The Reclaimer
by Trojan Prince
Summary: What if instead of General Hux, the First Order had a competent and capable commander. Along side Kylo Ren and Phasma, Grand Admiral Kuvira leads a fleet of hundreds of capital ships and millions of soldiers. Above all she is determined to restore what was lost with the Empire, and reclaim the galaxy from the Rebels. Eventual Kylo/OC romance. Please Read and Review.
1. Chapter 1 - The Unknown Regions

**Chapter 1 - Prologue**

The Resurgent class Star Destroyer _Reclaimer_ orbited over the planet of Urdak, like a massive wedge-shaped moon that stood guardian over the world. The planet was a temperate world that consisted mostly of flat grass covered steppe plains or lush forests that covered the landmasses not consumed by the planets oceans. The planet also housed a population of roughly 2.6 billion sentient lifeforms, a number that had spiked in recent years.

The planet (like many in the outer rim) had been what could only be kindly referred to as, a cesspool, until recently. Situated away from most major hyperplanes, away from the influence of the powerful Hutt Cartels, and of vertically no interest to the New Republic, the planet had become a haven for all manner of savagery and lawlessness. Pirate gangs, powerful enough to require a permanent base of operations, smugglers who needed a drop off point for or between jobs, or simply people who wanted to disappear. They all had found their way to Urdak.

Thus the world had become what it had been, a retched hive of scum and villainy, men unfit for mankind.

But as the commanding officer of the Reclaimer surveyed the world from on high, they marvelled and took immense pride in what had changed and what had been accomplished. To them in validated a life time of believe and reaffirmed their belief that the galaxy needed them to save it.

The First Order had come to Urdak about three years ago. The first thing they had done was send in the Stormtroopers and had cleared the pirates, smugglers, drug dealers and all other undesirables. They had fought of course, just as a virus will fight against inoculation, and just like that scenario, the virus had been purged. They had been rounded up, and pulled from their decedent nests, and gathered in the location, that could mostly be called a town centre. There in front of all the civilians, their crimes, against the First Order, the New Republic, and civilisation had been read out. Then they had been sentenced by the military tribunal and shot in the back of the head by the troopers.

A fate better then such scum deserved.

After that the First Order had taken official control and annexed the planet to their growing territory. Before the planet had almost been beyond hope. The economic and logistical handling of the planet had been a joke. And with the pirates and gangs, there had been no government whatsoever.

People had starved by the millions, bodies had gone unburied, diseases long eradicated in the core had been rampant, the suffering had been unimaginable. The military annexation of the planet had not gone without bloodshed of course. But now the planet was stable and prospering. The First Order Stormtroopers patrolled the streets and kept order and law. The fleet transferred goods on and off world, the hyperplanes had been cleared of pirates and allowed resources to flow naturally and uninterrupted.

Even as the commander watched the planet, they admired the unbroken line of starship traffic that moved toward the planet in one orderly line and the second line that moved just as orderly away from the planet. Not a ship twitched out of place and none dared go outside the official route or above the set speed limit. After all, stability bought people, and despite endless claims to the contrary, people craved law and order. They longed for the simplicity of being told what they could and could not do and a set of rules to live by.

The civilians, freed from the constant terror, barbarism and hedonism of the pirates had been jubilant and new civilians had arrived in droves to enjoy what was once unthinkable, a new life on a peaceful planet. Compared to what they had endured at the hands of the barbarous criminals, the civilians had been happy to welcome and adapt to the First Order laws and regulations. The brothels, gambling dens, fighting pits, and slave markets had all been closed. In their place had risen, spaceports, administration buildings, agricultural projects, educational programs and above all, a sense of purpose.

Families happy applied for their children to join the Stormtrooper core, knowing that the life and opportunities that they would have were better than anything they would find on Urdak. Also, the resources that the planet had provided had been a significant boon to the First Order. The dunium and durusteel had paid for at least 3 Star destroyers and contributed to the Starkiller project. Within a single generation, if no rebellions or unrest occurred on the planet (which was unlikely) the civilians would be granted full First Order citizenship. And with it would come all the rights and privileges held by those on the Supremacy itself.

And so Urdak had gone from being a forgotten cesspool of the Outer Rim, to being a model of a First Order planet.

Admiral Kuvira stood on the bridge of the _Reclaimer_ , her hands clasped behind her back, in full First Order dress. Her black uniform complete with polished shining boots, gloves and black greatcoat with First Order insignia in place. Her black hair was tied behind her head in a tight bun, and her lightly tanned face was highlighted by her vibrant green eyes that stared at the planet that slowly spun beneath her. She was in her late twenties and had an athletic build with a figure born of activity that many would find enticing. However, all who knew her understood that she could kill or cripple them with a jab or kick as easily as she could with a blade or blaster.

Kuvira had been raised by the First Order. From what she had learned, her original home world of Athulla was a 'nightmare' and she had the great fortune to escape a life on that hellhole and find herself among the hallowed ranks of the First Order pilots squads. For 10 years during her young adult hood she had flown a tie fighter and worked her way up to flight commander onboard the _Absolution_ , mentored by Captain Cardinal himself.

From there she had gained access to the hallowed and elite ranks of the senior officers of the First Order fleet. Her tactical and strategic experience and talent had been noticed by Brendol Hux and Admiral Sloane in a short time. As the years went by and she was given her own captaincy of a Star Destroyer, even Supreme Leader Snoke had taken note of her talents and skills.

Slowly, but steadily, she had risen through the ranks until she now stood as the most senior ranking Admiral in the First Order, and de facto Grand Admiral of the entire fleet. While there were several old imperial veterans that understandably chaffed at taking orders from such a young and fast rising star. However they had been shown time and again in the conquests of the Unknown Regions that their concerns were unfounded, and their petty jealousies, were unwanted. Slowly her malcontents had been forced into submission, and now those veterans treated her with trusted loyalty, or grudging respect.

She had been expertly effective in destroying the enemies that the Order had encountered in their expansion of their territory and she had also shown a talent for diplomacy and negotiation as well. As lesson that Cardinal had taught her at an early age was that one she had always tried to implement.

He had said,

" _It was easy to defeat an enemy army, occupy their territory and fight of the endless rebellions. But that is not conquest. True conquest is in showing your enemies, that they were wrong to oppose you in the first place. Defeat them, but don't break them. Rebuild their infrastructure in your own image, provide them with lower expenses then they had before, make necessities easier to attain, bring their people to positions of power. Do all these things and they will soon forget the reasons they fought in the first place. While some will always try to stir up others with talk of patriotism and independence. Others will soon realise that they are fighting and dying for increased taxes, and harder lives. Once they realise that, they won't care which banner files over their heads, as long as it's the one that serves them best."_

She had mastered this technique and planet after planet had fallen under the banner of the First Order. And more noticeable was that despite some early grumblings, the planet stayed quiet and pacified. Not only had these accomplishments lead to her achieving the rank of Admiral. But it had also ensured that she gained another title, one known across the entire galaxy.

 _The Great Uniter._

Now she was part of a powerful triumvirate that all but commanded the entirety of the entire First Order. The other two parts of that trio was Captain Phasma and Kylo Ren.

Captain Phasma's track record was certainly impressive, and her training programs onboard the _Finalizer_ had produced only great results. In her unique and iconic chrome silver armour, she had become a figurehead and idol for the entire First Order Stormtrooper core.

Kuvira could defiantly not complain about her skills as a warrior. The upbringing that she had had on her home world, the hostile planet of Parnassos had gifted her with an innate sense of danger, excellent physical perfection and a resolve that many commanders would kill to have in their soldiers. Phasma demanded nothing but excellence from her soldiers, and so showed nothing but perfection to them.

However, Kuvira could not truly forget that it was Phasma who had all but replaced her mentor and almost father figure, Cardinal. She had trained under him in her youth, and he had been a constant in her life since the beginning. He had done everything for her, from teaching her how to hold and fire a blaster, to comforting her when she had nightmares when she was five. He had explained their uselessness and the need for her not to allow anything, least of all, something as immaterial as dreams hold her back.

Where Cardinal was now, she didn't know. He had disappeared off the _Absolution_ roughly 1 year ago. She had heard that he had been suffering from noticeable psychological issues and the possibility of replacement on the youth training programs. She had been infuriated at the suggestion. But before any action could be taken, he had disappeared.

She knew that Cardinal would rather cut out his own heart and eat it then desert the First Order, and she had always suspected that Phasma had played some role in the disappearance of her red counterpart.

If proven true, she would order the chrome captain to be thrown out the nearest airlock. Until then she would continue to work alongside her for the betterment of the First Order and the galaxy.

As for Kylo Ren, her opinion was considerably brighter. While she like many others held sceptical views of the Force, and the ancient orders of the Jedi and the Sith. She has seen the power that it gave both the Supreme Leader and his apprentice enough to know that it was no cheap parlour trick.

In addition, she had learned that history lessons of Lord Vader. The Dark Lord who had acted as the unstoppable bulwark between the Empire and its loyal citizens and rebels. A dark knight that stood between the forces of chaos and the servants of order. The man, who had driven fear into the hearts of all those who dared to speak against the Empire.

The man who the entire Imperial army had worshipped with almost godlike devotion and who's name still inspired fear in rebel supporters and pride in the heirs to the Empire.

If Lord Vader had survived the battle of Endor and taken charge of the Imperial forces against the so called New Republic. She had no doubt that the Empire would have prevailed, and the galaxy would not have had to suffer the inept, decedent and toothless rule of the New Republic the last 30 years.

With all that in mind, she saw the value that Kylo Ren brought to the First Order. A new Vader, that the Stormtroopers could follow into battle with the confidence that victory was all but assured.

She and him had worked together on many occasions since his revelation to the First Order some years ago. During that time, they had built up a good working relationship and (she like to believe) a healthy respect for each other's abilities.

She had often credited his skills as a warrior and his ability to gather information and inspire his troops. At the same time, he had expressed acknowledgment (and sometimes even appreciation) for the tactics and resources she provided, often without needing to be asked. He had also passed on the credit for the numerous victories and expansions that could in large part be credited to her tactical plans and long-term strategy.

It was a productive relationship that pleased the Supreme Leader and ensured that the First Order remained largely free of infighting. Unlike the laughable assembly they called the New Republic senate.

It was certainly more productive then the relationship either of them had for the snivelling fool Armitage Hux. Both she, Kylo Ren, and the majority of the First Order high command knew that Hux was an unbalanced fool, who was perpetually angry and illogical. His only real skill was in fiery rhetorical speeches. And while those certainly had their uses, a General needed a great deal more to be worthy of the title.

Thankfully the Supreme Leader had seen Hux for the rapid dog that he was and despite granting him the rank of General, kept him away from the most important tasks, that he left to the unofficial triumvirate. The last reports, stated that he was stationed on the other side of their territory on the fringes of the Unknown region, expanding into those unnamed, and unexplored stars. At least he was in someway useful there.

Kuvira meanwhile had been placed on the front lines of their new unofficial war with the New Republic.

The New Republic had failed to live up to the vaunted promises that the Rebel Alliance had spewed to the galaxy in a spectacular fashion. So much so that the Republic that they had been so determined to restore was little more then a joke outside of the halls of the senate on Hosnian Prime. The mistakes that the so-called government made were almost comedic to the Admiral, if they weren't so damaging to the galaxy.

The dismantlement of most of the Rebel navy during the Galactic Concordance was a sold as a very nice pacifist dream, but then the inevitable had happened. Without a force to back up their policies and interests, the people of the galaxy quickly saw the New Republic for the toothless Nexu that it was. After that the criminal cartels and gangs had descended on the poor and impoverished Outer-Rim to begin carving out territory previously denied them by the Empire.

Even now the Hutts were rising back to their old prominence as the crime kings of a large section of the outer galaxy. Along with this came the increase in the slave, drug, and smuggling trades. And on a completely unrelated not, a large increase in the living expenses of many Republic politians.

It seemed that even now, the Rebels and their collaborates could not (or refused to) see, that a galaxy of millions of trillions of different beings needed to be united by an Iron Fist, not a velvet glove. Because of this they refused to project any noticeable power across the galaxy and for all intents and purposes, their laws and decrees had as much power in the galaxy, as a blind and limbless Ortolan.

Meanwhile the peoples of the Republic, especially those associated with the Populist party had ensured that the people of the galaxy had become so divided and concerned with the interest of their individual planets, that the Republic had no patriotic unity. It was more an alliance of convenience among completely sovereign nations. An alliance that would quickly fracture if the interests of the member worlds differed.

To her, it only confirmed what she had always known. Rebels could destroy, and blow up and sabotage, but they could not create. They could only tear down a government, not build one up.

Because of these weaknesses and the apparent dedication of the New Republic not to engage in any military spending, and certainly not any kind of galactic war. The Supreme Leader had decided to begin expanding their territory out of the Unknown regions and into the Outer Rim, which (despite original rebel support) had been left to wither and die by the New Republic.

With the wealth and resources of the Republic once again being funnelled into the core worlds the outer rim had become a poverty-stricken region, forced to negotiate with criminals and smugglers just for necessities. Ironically many of the outer rim world residents had predicted this would happen as far back as the battle of Akiva. At the time they had been called, cynical.

With all this in mind, it had not been hard for the First Order to gain a presence in the region. One by one, world by world, sector by sector, the banner of the First Order had been raised over these worlds. Never Republic member worlds, just those on the border lands. But even so, the First Order now stood at the zenith of its power. They controlled hundreds of worlds, hundreds of capital ships and millions of soldiers.

Soon, very soon. They would be ready to throw aside this ridiculous cold war relationship with the New Republic and reclaim the galaxy. That time was fast approaching, after 30 years of hiding in the Unknown Regions, rebuilding their strength, they would once again being order to the galaxy. That was one thing that the rebels had never understood. That while they clung to their primitive notions of independence, the dream of a united galaxy would not be killed so easily.

Of course, not everything had gone their way. She would have preferred the First Order to remain in the Unknown Regions until they were ready to attack a Republic that did not even know of their existence. After all that had been the tactic of the Reconstituted Sith Empire in the Great Galactic War thousands of years ago, and their eventual victory was a direct result of this surprise attack.

However, the former rebel leaders, led by the infuriating Princess/Senator/General Leia Organa had become aware of their existence and had quickly deduced their eventual intentions.

She had quickly gone to the Republic senate and demanded that they act against the Order. It was almost amusing to learn how her precious democratic system had turned on her and denounced her as a rabble rouser, or a desperate old woman trying to relive her rebel glory days. She had been cast from the senate and left as a private citizen.

But that woman was nothing if not tenacious, an attribute that Kuvira respected despite herself. She had founded the 'Resistance'. Ironically it was as much a successor to the Rebel Alliance, as the First Order was to the Empire.

Its goal was to watch and prepare a defence against the First Order's eventual attack.

However, the Resistance was nothing but a shadow of the Rebel Alliance. Its forces were small, its personel were half trained, its resources were laughable. But most importantly, it had nowhere near the support that the old alliance had.

No one ever seemed to notice that many of the Rebel Alliance's founders were wealthy Senators, who has suddenly had their power and privilege curtailed by the rise of the Empire. Bail Organa, Mon Mothma, Garm Iblis, Amilyn Holdo, Admiral Ackbar, all had been in position or power in the Old Republic. And that power had been reduced dramatically by the Empire.

And yet somehow everyone thought that they had founded the Rebellion for purely altruistic reasons?!

It was a laughable notion. And they had used that lie to convince the ignorant and the angry into destroying the Empire so that they could reclaim their corrupt power.

But the Resistance had no such backers. And the senate was more then happy to distance themselves from the inane ramblings of Organa. And the public, had seen more then enough of the New Republic's corruption and ineptitude to really care anymore. If she had asked many people (especially in the Outer Rim) to help save the New Republic, the most common answer she would receive was

"Why?"

In fact, she had received that answer many times. She had a large amount of influence with First Order Security Bureau, and she had instituted a program where their operatives would pose as New Republic, or even Resistance operatives and try to sound out the feelings of the people around the galaxy.

The results had been pleasing. True on planets that were heavily pro-republic, Chandrila, Mon Cala, Kashyyyk, Naboo, Coruscant, Coreilla and Balmorra, support had been minimal.

But the Empire had allies and goodwill across the galaxy as well, despite what New Republic propaganda would say.

Kuat, Vardos, Ganthel, Chagar IX, Akiva, Hevurion, Sianar and Arkanis had all prospered under the Empire. And they were eager for a return to the old days. And when the First Order marched to conquest, they would be the first to join them.

Still even the smallest insect bite can prove fatal if the circumstances are right. And the resistance had proven to be a thorn in their side for several years. The fiasco with Agent Terex was one of the most notable. And she would not make the Empire's mistake by underestimating their enemies.

"Admiral."

She turned and saw an aide marching up the bridge towards her. When he came within reach he stopped and saluted respectfully and began his report.

"We have received an intelligence report that the fugitive Lor San Tekka has been located in a small village on the planet of Jakku. The _Finalizer_ is already on route and we have been ordered by the Supreme Leader to rendezvous with them over the planet to begin an extraction operation. Lord Ren and Captain Phasma will assist in the mission."

Kuvira turned away and looked back out the viewport.

Jakku. That world that saw the last great battle of the Rebellion. The ignorant even went so far as to call it the graveyard of the Empire. She however preferred to see it as the birth place of the First Order. It seemed oddly fitting that the beginning of their revenge should start at the same place that the Rebellion destroyed all they had and drove them to the dark of the galaxy.

It was almost poetic.

Without turning back round she said "Set course of Jakku and hail the _Finalizer_ that we are on our way. Also place the tie fighter squadrons on stand by and the 3rd legion must be ready to board their landing craft for an assault."

The aide looked stunned at the level of preparation being ordered. Tentatively he asked, "You expect that much resistance, Admiral?"

She turned back to face him with an eyebrow raised.

"We know that the Resistance, also knows the location of Tekka as well, and they want the map to that coward as much as we do. They will be there either in force, or they will send a small number of their best. Either way, we will not take any chances with a mission of this importance."

The aide nodded "Yes Admiral, right away." He turned and hurried away, issuing her orders tow the bridge crew and the hyperspace coordinates were already being uploaded to the nav computer.

As the light of the stars stretched to lines, and the black of the void changed to the swirling blue of hyperspace she allowed a small smile to stretch across her face.

It was time to take back what was theirs. After all, there was a reason her Star destroyer was called _Reclaimer_.


	2. Chapter 2 - Jakku

**Chapter 2 – Jakku**

The _Reclaimer_ came out of hyperspace just a few miles from the _Finalizer_ as they both orbited the desert world of Jakku. This was a rare sight in itself. The First Order had learned from the Empire about the danger of concentrating too much of their power in one place. Therefore, star destroyers often patrolled alone and rarely meet up unless it was for a critical mission or deep within First Order territory.

Now though, the two-star destroyers took up formation to ensure that each protected the exposed flanks of the other. Meanwhile the bridge of the _Finalizer's_ holo communication display let up with the blue tinged image of Admiral Kuvira. On the bridge, Kylo Ren, Captain Peavey and Captain Phasma stood watching the display.

Kylo Ren's expression could not be seen due to his iconic mask, and his posture gave nothing away. However, as he watched the image flicker into life, he privately admitted his pleasure that Admiral Kuvira was helping him to oversee this critical mission.

While he had a very impressive track record of completing each mission that the Supreme Leader tasked him with, the mission always ran a lot smoother with less collateral damage when the Admiral was also a part of the mission.

In addition to that, he had a great deal of respect for her skill in combat as well as in military tactic's. His idol, his grandfather Darth Vader had been famous for his distaste for the cowardly Imperial commanders and sycophants. But he had also greatly favoured the soldiers and troopers that he fought side by side with on the battlefield.

He was confident that if Darth Vader had met Admiral Kuvira (who was known for her climb to power, her skills was a warrior and her command ability) he would have approved of her. In fact, along with Tarkin and Thrawn, she would likely have been one of the few commanders that he respected.

With that in mind he felt that his warm relationship with the Admiral was justified and would have been acceptable to his Grandfather's reasoning.

Phasma meanwhile was also musing about the Admiral as her image came into view. The first and most important lesson she had learnt in this existence, from her life on Parnassos was that there was no such thing as safety. Danger and threats were always there. They might lessen or increase based on the situation, but they never disappeared completely.

Not many people understood that. Not even among the First Order. The soldiers and officers of the First Order were trained constantly and from birth to fight and to give their lives if need be for the cause. But even they fell into the trap of believing they were safe on their massive star destroyers, in their planetary bases or on monstrous constructs like the _Supremacy_ or Starkiller base.

Safety was life's greatest illusion.

Phasma knew this, and she had resolved long ago that she would survive no matter what. She had betrayed her former tribes to survive. She had joined the First Order to escape Parnassos and survive. And if she had to choose between the Order and her own life, it was not a contest.

Nevertheless, she felt some measure of respect for Admiral Kuvira. While she felt that her commitment to the First Order and its cause was somewhat naïve and self – destructive. She nevertheless commended her skill in battle and her strength or character.

Phasma did not respect many people. Not Hux, not Kylo Ren, not even Supreme Leader Snoke, who while powerful was almost defenceless physically. Yet she felt some measure of acknowledgement for the Admiral.

"Lord Ren, Captains. What is the situation on Jakku?" Kuvira asked as her image materialised and she stood imposingly in the blue field.

Captain Peavey stepped forward

"Admiral, we have located the village that Tekka is reported to be based. Our scans report roughly 20 – 30 inhabitants and a single Republic X-Wing is situated by the village. We have four personnel carriers crewed and ready to attack seize the village. We have also placed fighters on alert in case the X-wing manages to take off."

Kuvira nodded. "Good, I want the _Finalizer_ to be in place to deploy a tractor beam if the need arises. I also want an envoy to be deployed to the village first to demand Tekka's surrender and peaceful incarceration."

Lord Ren stepped forward

"Lor San Tekka will not surrender to the First Order Admiral, you waste our time by trying." He said, his tone respectful, but he made is opinion of the plan clear.

Kuvira turned to Ren. "Of course, he won't. But when the villagers realise that they and their families are being placed in danger due to Tekka's action and stubbornness, they may react differently. Besides, if we offer this chance and they refuse, let none say that the Order was not reasonable to these desert vermin".

Phasma and Peavey looked confused. Well Peavey did, but Phasma's face could not be seen, she gave a subtle change in stance. However, they did not question or ask for further details.

"Very well Admiral, the envoy will be dispatched immediately. Shall we order the ground forces to hold until he was received their answer?"

Kuvira's holo flickered for a moment before she gave her answer.

"No."

BB-8 came rolling into the hut that Poe and Lor San Tekka were seated in chirping and beeping incessantly.

Poe looked up at his droid in alarm, then quickly turned back to Lor in regretful acceptance. "We've got company."

The two men exit the hut fast, while Poe moves to the centre of the village and raises his quadnoculars to his eyes, frantically scanning the horizon. In the darkness of Jakku's desert night the light is easily visible.

The single ship is heading towards them at a speed and course that leaves no doubt that the ship is heading for the village with a purpose in mind. However, the fact that it is a single ship, and not even an assault lander catches Poe by surprise. In fact, it looked like an Xi-class light shuttle. Poe knew those ships were not designed for combat, and had not enough space for a practical number of Stormtroopers

Poe lowers the quadnocs and frowns in confusion. "First Order defiantly, but its not an assault craft, it's a diplomat or officers personal shuttle." He turns to Lor who looks slightly more hopeful at that news.

"Perhaps they don't know we are here. The First Order's territory has recently expanded to the edge of this system. Maybe it's a routine survey. Or maybe the New Republic has ceded control of Jakku to the order?"

Poe wanted to retort that the New Republic would never give away a member world to the First Order. But he found that he didn't quite believe it. After all, Jakku was on the frontiers of the known galaxy, near the Unknown regions (the First Order heartlands). It had no wealth, no resources, no influence in the Senate. And if not for the Battle of Jakku 30 years ago, almost no one would know it existed.

With all that in mind, the idea that the New Republic would give the First Order Jakku like a used speeder was very possible.

The shuttle continued to close, and Poe knew they needed to decide quickly. He turned back to Lor

"You have to hide."

Lor continued to stare at the shuttle which had started to descend.

"You have to leave. Go!"

Poe turns to him, conflicted, but finally nods and hurries off. BB-8 followed him as fast as he could roll on the lose sand. He ran as fast as he could to his X-Wing that was parked just over a small rise. But before he reached it he paused.

He didn't know what the First Order shuttle intended with Lor's village, but he hoped that it was not intending to attack them. He felt that was unlikely given the First Order's usual style. However, he knew that if they saw his X-wing flying away, they would know the village was helping the Resistance and they would defiantly become hostile.

He couldn't let that happen. Right now, there was still a change that the village would survive. And he was curious to learn what the First Order was doing here, if it was not due to Lor San Tekka. It might also prove useful information for the General.

Ignoring BB-8 disapproving chirps and beeps, he turned and slowly crept back to the top of the rise that (hopefully) hid his X-wing.

Lor stood in front of the other villages who had gathered their weapons and grouped together in front of the landed shuttle in front of the village.

The ramp had descended, and a black clad First Order officer stepped out onto the sands, accompanied by four stormtroopers in escort formation. The officer strode forward with purpose and came to a stop a few feet away from the village when some of the people levelled their weapons at him.

The stormtroopers also raised their weapons, but the officer raised his hand and motioned for them to lower their weapons back to their previous position.

The officer turned back to the village and looked directly at Lor.

"Lor San Tekka, of the Church of the Force?" He said, but it was clearly not a question.

Lor did not deny the identification and simply nodded.

"I am Lucius Varro, of the First Order Diplomatic Corps. I have been sent to find you and request that you accompany me back to my superiors. They want to ask you a few questions about Jedi Lore, which we understand is your area of expertise." The officer stated, in a polite but clearly rehearsed tone.

Lor took a moment to respond. His last encounter with the First Order wasn't nearly so civil. Then again he had heard that they had taken a more moderate approach in recent years. Perhaps this was an attempt to change their image to the galaxy.

"I thank you for the invitation, but I must regretfully decline. I have a number of responsibilities here that I must attend too." Lor stated in an equally polite but clearly distrustful and disinterested tone. He felt the people around him shift as if expecting combat.

The envoy appeared unflustered and continued. "My superiors have instructed me to assure you that you will be very well compensated for your time and aid. You must know that the First Order is very wealthy. And, forgive me for saying so, but surely you and your people would enjoy better accommodations then this."

He gestured to the village with a dismissive hand motion. At this the villagers bristled at the implication. Lor meanwhile seemed to grow in confidence at the situation.

"I am afraid my place is here, where I am needed. As you have already pointed out Jakku is a harsh and difficult world. And here all must pull their weight and make their contribution to the community if the community is to survive. If I were to leave it would be a selfish action."

Varro nodded rather eagerly instead of becoming annoyed with the stonewalling he was facing.

"I understand completely Mr Tekka. After all, that is the entire principle behind the First Order. Ensuring that all work together to ensure that the unified whole prospers as one. We too take a heavy stance on those who would seek individual profit instead of aiding to help the unit.

With that in mind, I have a final offer that I am sure you would agree is mutually beneficial.

My superiors have confirmed that if you were to aid us in this endeavour. You and all you fellows in this village would be offered residence on one of our newest and most idyllic worlds, possibly Urdak. There you would live comfortable lives together, you could continue your studies, and you would enjoy the full protection of the First Order. In addition, within 20 years, you and all your colleagues would also be granted citizenship, with all the rights and privileges thereof.

Varro looked at him as if he could not even fathom that he would refuse such a generous offer, to remain on this dust ball. However, Tekka had no intention of aiding them in the hunting and killing of Luke Skywalker. Even if they offered to give him his own planet to rule.

"I would rather toil in the burning sands of this planet then aid the First Order in its quest to plunge the galaxy into darkness." He proclaimed proudly. At this the Stormtroopers raised their weapons again and this time the now scowling diplomat did not order them to stop.

"Yes, because you are too attached to the dying, sputtering, flickering 'light' of the New Republic." Varro snarled, all signs of cordiality between the two evaporating in an instant. "My superiors are determined to have the information they needed Tekka, are you prepared to expose you fellow villagers to the consequences of your refusal?"

Poe heard the conversation taking a nasty turn and prepared to fire his blaster rifle if need be.

For a moment Lor hesitated and briefly scanned the faces of the villagers around him. They were his disciple's, but he would not expose them to danger without their understanding. However, he saw nothing but resolve in their faces as they glared at the First Order troops.

He turned back to Varro. "You have my answer. And you would do well to abandon the First Order here and now young men. You could remain here, do some actual good for the galaxy.

At this Varro laughed. "What?!, That is the most ludicrous thing I have ever heard. I will be out there uniting the galaxy and bringing peace and security to countless worlds under one banner. Meanwhile all you can expect out of life, is that the animals don't eat you bones when you di….ARRGH"

Before Varro could finish one of the villagers, feed up with the insults to their teacher, or home world, or both, fired his blaster into Varro's chest. Before his body hit the ground, the rest of the villagers fired as well, and the four Stormtroopers were also laid out.

Lor and Poe were both stunned at what had happened. Both understood that the First Order might have been willing to come back later or even leave them alone eventually. But with their envoy and soldiers killed without acceptable provocation, they would ensure deadly retribution.

Poe ran down to the scene and before Lor could stop him bolted into the shuttle and took down the pilots before they could finish relaying a report to their base. But once he exited the shuttle he saw he was already too late.

Four AAL-1971/9.1 Troop Transports were already charging towards the village, two from the west and two from the North. The First Order clearly wanted to flank the armed villagers without risking too much in friendly fire.

"You should have left already, go NOW!" Tekka shouted at Poe. "We will try to hold them off."

Poe was about to respond, but before he could force words from his mouth an explosion rocked the village and the blast wave nearly sent him to the ground in his unprepared state.

Turning he saw his X-wing was burning and another explosion made it close to unrecognisable. In the sky he saw in the darkness the telltale lights and noise of a Tie-Fighter squadron as it completed its strafing run.

"Well this mission did not go as planned!" He quipped, but Tekka did not look amused. It was a defensive mechanism of his. But he could not deny that this situation was rabidly going from bad to infinitely worse.

All he could do was make sure it wasn't a complete mission failure.

He called BB-8 over to him, even as the Troop Transports began to puke stormtroopers into the village. The civilians opened fire as soon as the doors to the transports opened and managed to gun down several the white soldiers before they got out of the vehicle.

But the Stormtroopers were not trained from birth for no reason. They quickly left the transport and took up assault formation as they returned fire. Their superior training quickly beginning to tell as the villagers were gunned down and their bravery began to waver in the face of the firestorm.

Lor San Tekka moves sadly through the village as Stormtroopers wielding flame throwers destroy structures and use the flames to force the remaining villagers to panic. Surrendering villagers are rounded up and quickly brought to the centre structure of the village.

Back at the outskirts of the settlement, Poe kneels beneath and pulls from the leather sack a small, old artefact which he inserts into BB-8.

"You take this. It's safer with you than it is with me. You get as far away from here as you can. Do you hear me? (BB-8 beeps and hesitates) I'll come back for you! It will be alright." Poe urged, then he turns and runs back to his position on the rise near his X-Wing, his rifle drawn and gunning down what Stormtroopers he can.

BB-8 watches Poe run off. He whines nervously, then turns and heads off. As he moves beyond the village he turns back once to look at Poe one final time. Then he turns toward the endless eternity of sand in front of him and rolls away into the darkness.

The troopers and villagers continue to fight as the battle drew to a close. As one trooper is hit and goes down another kneels to help. The hit trooper raises a torn, bloody glove his hand visible in a gesture of friendship, pleading, fear? Whatever it was would forever remain unknown as his life slipped away and his discarded shell ceased to function.

His hand came down across his comrade's face and marks the stormtrooper's mask with blood just before he dies. The trooper, stands and appears momentarily overwhelmed by the battle. As he turns every which way, as if seeking meaning or some purpose in the battle that has left bodies all around him.

As the battle came to a final close and the Stormtroopers assumed a formation around the amassed and disarmed villagers, another sight appeared in the sky above the burning settlement. An Upsilon-class command shuttle, appeared from the smoke and the darkness to hover over the village like a demonic bird of prey, before It slowly landed on the sand. Its slow and imposing descent almost seemed intentional, as a way to cause further terror among the inhabitants of Jakku.

The shuttle craft door opens and through the dusty wind and smoke of the planet and the battlefield Kylo ren exits the ship, a tall, dark figure, he strides through the chaos toward San Tekka. Behind Kylo Ren, exits another figure. This one flanked by two Stormtrooper commander guards.

She is a woman, Poe can see that very clearly, and (while he hates to admit it to himself) she was in fact quite striking. In a military, no nonsense, warrior princess kind of way. Her hair is black, her skin a light tan hue and a pair of the most vibrant green eyes he has ever seen stare out at the world in a look that promises nothing but cold calculation.

He knows immediately who she is. He as seen her image often enough in the display holo's on D'Qar. This must be Admiral Kuvira. The reason behind the First Order's sudden increase in territorial expansion and public opinion.

There was a time when he would have happily given his left hand for a kill shot at her. He had heard the General talk about her. How she was one of the greatest threats to the Republic within the First Order. He remembered a particularly gruelling session when she had been informed that the Republic would no longer be providing military hardware due to a diplomatic protest by Admiral Kuvira.

The reason for this had been a Resistance attack against the First Order on one of their training camps for children. Their aim had been to capture the base and rescue the children.

However, Admiral Kuvira had instead documented the entire incident (carefully ensuring no children were visible) and had sent an envoy with a message to Hosnian Prime to address the senate. She had shown the recorded evidence and declared that the Resistance had suddenly and deliberately attacked their territory and their citizens. She declared it a 'cowardly and unprovoked attack' and that if the Republic did not disavow the Resistance 'terrorists'. Then the First Order would consider it an act of war.

Naturally the Republic Senators had spines made of Hutt slime, and the brains to match. They had immediately backed down at the threat of war and proceeded to cut off all 'official' support to the Resistance, along with most of the 'unofficial' support as well.

The General had been stating loudly that it was not Kuvira's military skill that made her so dangerous. (Although that was defiantly an important factor). It had left their entire strike force destroyed, with nothing gained.

It was her understanding that the true war was won in the hearts and minds of the people of the galaxy.

It was a lesson the Empire never learned. Instead they relayed solely on brute strength and intimidation. It made its power effective but also brittle. So that when the Empire was shown to be vulnerable, there was no inherent loyalty to fall back on. Instead world after world had fallen to uprisings, further weakening the Empire.

In the end, this had been almost as much of a reason for the fall of the Empire, then the battle of Endor.

The General had declared that if the First Order had learned this lesson. Then their fight had just gotten a lot more difficult.

But for now, he couldn't ponder the what ifs of Admiral Kuvira. His attention was brought back 100% to Kylo Ren. Who was even now advancing on Tekka.

Kylo Ren stops before the outraged Lor San Tekka, dwarfing him. Only now does it become apparent how imposing Kylo Ren can be when he wants to be. He looms over Tekka and the rest of the villages like an ancient spirt of death, come to take a tithe of lives.

Even in the face of this overwhelming power that even those not attuned to the Force could feel, Tekka never flinched once.

Nor did he react as the women (who was clearly in command here) came to stand at Kylo Ren's side. She faced him directly, one arm by her side, the other resting horizonal behind her back. She stared at him and he felt as if he was being studied like a germ under a microscope. Her stare also seemed to hold the pressure of a glacier.

It took all his strength not to look away.

Kylo Ren stepped forward and faced Tekka directly.

"Look how old you've become." He stated. The tone of his voice both mocking and strangely philosophical.

Tekka never missed a beat in his response. Almost like he had been rehearsing it for some time. "Something far worse has happened to you."

"You know what I've come for." Kylo Ren declared.

"I know where you come from. Before you called yourself Kylo Ren." Tekka answered. His gaze never leaving the imposing masked face.

"The map to Skywalker. We know you've found it, and now you're going to give it to the First Order." Kylo Ren stated this as if it was as much as fact as stating that the stars would shine in the sky tonight.

Tekka seemed for some reason to take strength from this statement. "The First Order rose from the dark side... you did not." He almost seemed smug. He was smiling even as his life was hanging by the increasingly fraying thread of Ren's patience.

Kylo Ren whirled around and matched back to stand right in front of Tekka in a posture that anyone would see as threatening. "I'll show you the dark side." He whispered. The tone was so dangerous it would have been better if he had shouted.

Tekka seemed to know this for his smile disappeared and he suddenly seemed to sober. Nevertheless, he continued to speak. "You may try, but you cannot deny the truth that is your family." He stated with concluding finality. Almost as if this was his chosen epitaph.

"You're so right." Suddenly Kylo Ren raises his lightsaber and ignites it. The red beam of energy with perpendicular smaller blades at the hilt crackles and sparks. A unique buzz emits from the hit as if the beam of energy is too passionate and hateful to remain as a straight pure beam of light. Instead it's constantly spitting sparks and smoking like a blade of actual fire.

And as he rips it down across Lor San Tekka. The old man's corpse falls to the ground amide screams and wails of his bereaved followers.

Poe, running, sees this and yells out in anger. He aims his blaster and fires at Kylo Ren! Instantly, Kylo ren raises his hand, calling on the Force and bending it to his will. Poe's blast freezes in mid-air, the bolt of energy straining and vibrating as it tries to continue its journey but cannot break through the invisible force holding it back.

Poe, just like his energy blast also cannot move. He struggles to move his frozen limbs to action. His efforts increase when he sees two Stormtroopers advancing on him, but he might as well have been frozen in carbonite.

He is grabbed by the two Stormtroopers, and after a vicious blow to his stomach leaves him winded. They then take hold of his suddenly free limbs and drag him past the vibrating, frozen blast, to Kylo Ren.

A Stormtrooper begins a brutal pat down, searching for weapons while Kylo Ren moves closer. Poe just glares at the dark figure that just killed a man he greatly respected. He was already planning how to spit so that it hit the bastards spooky helmet. However, the stormtrooper kicks out Poe's legs and he lands hard on his knees.

Kylo Ren kneeled to look at Poe, while Kuvira stepped towards him so she could observe him.

After a few seconds of tense silence as Poe stared from the haunting mask of Kylo Ren, to the searching eyes of the Admiral he decided that if they were going to kill him they might as well get one with it.

"So who talks first? You talk first? I talk first?". Poe asked. He knew he was likely making Ren even more angry and therefore not helping his life expectancy. But he knew that if he managed to buy BB-8 even a few additional seconds to vanish into the desert, then it would be worth it.

Besides, he knew that he was almost defiantly dead already. And while this was defiantly not the way he had planned to go out. He would rather go here and now then face what ever the First Order did with Resistance prisoners.

Kylo Ren studied him, and Poe got the impression of being a bug beneath a magnifying glass.

"The old man gave it to you." He whispered, more to himself then to Poe. It was also not a question but a statement.

"It's just very hard to understand you with all the…apparatus." Poe continued, only to be interrupted by the two Stormtroopers hauling him to his feet. The Troopers roughly pull Poe away and one of them begins a brutal pat down. His clothes and pockets, every limb is roughly searched for anything that he might be concealing on his person.

Kylo Ren moves closer and continues to observe in silence. Meanwhile Poe just glares as the pat down ends.

"Nothing, sir."

"Put him on board." Kylo Ren turned and began to move back to his shuttle. As he turned Phasma began to make her way forward from the rear of the Stromtrooper formation, where she had been observing the situation.

"Sir, the villagers?" She questioned, the light of the fire causing her chrome armour to glow and ripple in the darkness, while her captain cape billowed behind her.

Kylo Ren turns around to regard the assembled villagers. Some of them are trembling as they await his verdict. Others are glaring back defiantly, and others still have expressions of pleading on their faces as they clasp small children to their chests.

Ren only takes a few seconds to come to his decision.

"Kill them all." He states with an air of finality. Phasma nods and steps forward. The villagers began to scream and whimper while others tried to face their death with dignity. Poe tried to struggle even as the Stormtroopers began to drag him away to the shuttle.

"Hold". All eyes turn to Admiral Kuvira, who up until that point hand watched all the goings on with mute silence and her eyes being the only sign of her interest in the situation.

Kuvira stepped forward and slowly walked toward the group of desert dwellers. Her steps were measured and paced, and she walked with all the confidence of a queen. It was as if she was enjoying a stroll along a beach instead of walking through a battlefield.

She stopped at the edge of the Stormtrooper corden line. She paused for a moment with her hands clasped behind of her back.

Then she reached into her pocket and pulled out a standard holo projector. With a quick flick of her flinger, a massive display appeared above the assembled crowd. The projection consisted of an almost solid block of text displayed in galactic basic.

The actual contents of the projection were lost on the villagers. While they could all speak basic, most of them could not read it. The education system on Jakku was literally non-existent. In fact, only Tekka could have explained it to them. Now that he was dead, that duty fell to Kuvira.

However, all of them recognised the symbol of the New Republic side by side with the symbol of the First Order, displayed underneath several signatures.

"For those of you who cannot read basic, I will explain the situation. This is a copy of the agreement that was passed on the floor of the New Republic Senate two rotations ago. This documents states and confirms that the New Republic formally cedes all authority and jurisdiction over the entire Jakku system to the First Order. This transaction was carried out in return for the payment of three million credits from the First Order, to the New Republic."

She paused as she let the news sink in, then continued. "The New Republic gave away your entire planet for less money then that shuttle costs." She stated in an emotionless voice as she gestured to the Upsilon-class shuttle behind her. Her tone was not mocking or arrogant. It was simply stated as if she were discussing the weather.

However, the reaction of the crowd and Resistance pilot was nothing close to emotionless. The crowd was stunned and began discussing this news between themselves in semi whispers.

None if them had any great loyalty to the New Republic. But they had supported their cause and they had believed the Resistance operatives, and Tekka, when they had championed its value. They knew that they owed nothing to the New Republic. After all they had never received any aid from them, and they survived on their own.

But to hear that the cause that they had supported, killed for, and would likely die for had sold their entire world, just like that….it caused many viewpoints to shatter.

It also led many of them to bitterly regret what they had done up until now. Why should they have risked everything for a government that had literally sold them to the First Order, like an old droid they didn't want anymore!

Many of the villagers began to turn angry and betrayed eyes towards Poe, who had a look of shame and sadness on his features. He had known better then most that the level of corruption, inaction and selfishness in the Senate was greater then ever. He had also known that the worlds in the Outer-Rim, without resources or value, were typically viewed as worthless rocks on Hosnian Prime.

Naturally he had never mentioned these facts to the people of those worlds as it would naturally decrease their already fragile view of the New Republic and the Resistance.

Still, the news that the Senate had simply sold the entire system to the First Order, was a heavy blow to his view of the New Republic he and others had fought so hard to defend. And the nation that he would most likely die for.

He had recognised several of the names on that treaty. Senators who had been known to be powerful members of the Centrists faction. It only made sense that those Palpatine worshipping bastards would be happy to give the entire galaxy to the First Order if they could.

In fact, the Resistance had been fairly certain that a number of the Centrist senators were not only sympathetic to the First Order. But openly aided them in their cause by supplying them with information and aid for their polices in the Senate.

But he also saw several Populist signatures as well, which also made some sense as they seemed to be from members of the radical faction that advocated the complete dissolution of the Republic and basically every system for itself.

He tried to remember that the Republic was not the Senate. It was not the Senate that the Resistance, Tekka or himself was fighting to defend. It was the people that made up the Republic. It was the people that lived their lives free, and who would suffer under the tyranny of the First Order if they failed.

His thoughts were broken as Kuvira continued talking.

"As of now, this world is under the control of the First Order, and you are all subject to its laws. You have harboured enemies of the Order, killed an official envoy without provocation, and killed loyal soldiers with deliberate intent."

She paused as she talked but she began to pace back and forth along the crowd. She ensured that all eyes followed her movements and made certain that her body language displayed nothing but truthfulness and resolve.

"Because of these crimes, I could quite easily have you all killed right here and now. Do you understand that? I can end you all here, and no one would question it or care. Not the New Republic, not the Jedi and certainly not the Force." She said with a brutal, biting tone.

As she spoke many of the villager's defiance seemed to be leaving them as they bowed their heads and prepared to accept their fate.

"However, this does not have to be the case." Kuvira said, while raising her hand to emphasise her point. The villagers looked up. "If you all, kneel and pledge your loyalty, your lives, your future to the First Order, here and now. Then on behalf of the Supreme Leader, himself. I will grant you amnesty for this offense."

The villagers were now listening with rapt attention. There was now some tentative hope that they might actually make it out of this situation alive.

"You will remain on Jakku and be a part of our first outpost on this world. You will assist our people in setting up their headquarters, and influence on this world. You will help us in bringing this world to some semblance of order, and eventually civilisation. Your children will be placed in our training program. They will remain in contact with you, but they will spend most of their time, among our fleet and they will in time, rise above their origins.

I myself came from such a world and background. And now I have the most powerful fleet in the galaxy at my command. Your children will have the opportunity for a similar future as well. A life, I think you all know is beyond what they can dream on this world. And certainly, more than the New Republic will offer you.

But I make this offer and for this one time only. Refuse, and you will all die here, and the First Order will march on to greatness without you. Choose, Now!"

For a moment nothing happened.

Then a man in the front of the crowd sank to his knees. After the first domino fell, the rest began to follow. Slowly the crowd of villagers knelt to their Admiral and in doing so, pledged their loyalty to the First Order.

Finally, only three villagers remained standing defiantly.

Kuvira took a few steps forward. "This is your last opportunity to join us." She stated, the threat now clear in her voice.

After it became clear that the people were not going to bow, she signed. "Hmmm, very well then."

Suddenly Kuvira stepped forwarded. She quickly pulled out her personal blaster pistol and before the trio could even raise their hands, she fired, shooting them in their heads.

The kneeling crowd screamed as the bodies fell. And Poe yelled out as he was roughly pulled on to the shuttle.

Kuvira turns and begins issuing orders to get the fires under control and to begin the long process of setting this primitive village into the foundation for the First Order's planetary outpost. As she passes Kylo Ren and Phasma on her way back to the shuttle she stops and turn to face them, a small smile playing on her lips.

"This war isn't so much a fight as a campaign Lord Ren. Hearts and Minds. That is how the rebellion stole the galaxy. And that is how we are going to take it back."

With that she walked up the ramp and into the shuttle, with her two Stormtrooper guards falling into position at her sides.

Kylo Ren also turns and heads back toward his ship. But then he feels something in the Force. He turns and looks at a stormtrooper with a blood-stained helmet for a long moment. Kylo Ren then heads off, passing the frozen blast, which, after a beat, goes free and slams into a nearby structure.

The blast causes some fresh screams from the villagers, who had begun to put their settlement in order. Ironically helped by the white soldiers who minutes earlier they had been battling.

Meanwhile, BB-8 continued to flee into the desert, looking back occasionally, but only for a moment or two. Then he continued his journey, even though he had no idea where he was going.

After a short trip, the shuttle and all but one of the transports, arrived back into the hanger of the _Finalizer_ , while the _Reclaimer_ remained close by.

Poe, shackled, is ushered from the transport through the hangar. He stops and stares in awe at the imposing space. He realises that this hanger probably contains as many people and resources as the entire Resistance base on D'Qar. And he can even look out the launch bay and see another of the monster Star Destroyers orbiting the planet.

He had known that the First Order had not been ideal during the 30 years since they fled to the Unknown regions. But this was hard to process. And he was starting to have doubts about the Resistance's chances. Even if the New Republic joined them in full scale war against the First Order, he was not certain what the outcome would be.

However, he was certain what his chances and treatment would be while in the First Order's gentle custody.

He was not disappointed.

"I had no idea we had the best pilot in the Resistance on board. Comfortable?" Kylo Ren lurks in the shadows of the interrogation chamber. Poe tries to focus in on him, but his vision is blurry. He cannot tell if that is due to the drugs they gave him, or just the blood leaking into his eyes from his gaping head wounds.

Still he manages to move his battered lips. "Not really."

Ren begins to move closer, almost like a stalking animal moves towards its prey. "I'm impressed. No one has been able to get out of you what you did with the map."

Poe cannot help making a joke, even if he was pretty sure he was going to deeply regret it. "You might wanna rethink your technique."

Kylo Ren says nothing, reaches out to him. Poe flinches in the chair as Kylo Ren reaches for his face but stops without touching him. Poe is soon in agony, he feels the presence in his mind, rifling through his memories and thought like a man flicking pages on a holopad. He tries to resist but he can't fight the overwhelming force.

"Where is it?" Kylo Ren asks in his low and dangerous voice.

Poe feels like his head is being split in half, he has now words that accurately describes the pain he is feeling right now. It is not physical pain, it somehow goes deeper than that. Still, he tries to remain defiant.

"The Resistance…. will not be intimidated… by you." He gasps.

Ren increases the pressure even further. "Where... is it?" Poe can't take it, and he begins to scream.

A few minutes later, Kylo Ren strode out of the interrogation cell and made his way to the bridge. Once there his footsteps caused Admiral Kuvira to turn around from her conversation with the captain.

"Its in a droid. A BB unit." He stated flatly

Kuvira turned around fully and considered for a moment.

"Droids of that make and advanced technology are rare on Jakku. We will dispatch scouts to the planet to come the area around the new Outpost Tilus V (Tekka's village). In the meantime, we will send our contacts on the surface the instructions to spread the word to the scavengers. Once news of a substantial reward becomes known, they will do all they can to return the droid to us."

Kylo Ren nodded and turned away "I will leave that to you Admiral."

Kuvira also nodded and turned back to the captain. "The planet is under blockade until the droid is found. No ships leave or enter without our permission. Make sure everyone knows that any who try to break this blockade will be destroyed immediately."

The captain nodded and turned to begin issuing her orders. However, before he could one of the bridge crew spoke up.

"Captain, there is a security breach in the main hanger."


	3. Chapter 3 - The Escape

**Chapter 3 – The Escape**

 **FN -2187 POV**

"Not yet. Okay, go. This way."

FN-2187 walks quickly toward the far wall with his blaster rifle still aimed (incorrectly and lazily) at Poe as he moves them across the hanger past the flight crews and pilots performing maintenance on their own aircraft.

He also had to steer them away from the stormtrooper platoon's that kept marching through the hanger as they completed their assigned routes and began to move through the hanger to their next assignment.

He makes a bee line for the nearest line of TIE/sf space superiority fighters. These TIE/sf were reserved for members of the First Order's elite Special Forces. They were the result of three decades of work by Imperial and later First Order scientists and mechanics. They were also the brainchild of their very helpful allies in Sienar-Jaemus Fleet Systems.

The fighters boasted weapons far more powerful than a standard TIE, combining laser cannons with a heavy weapons turret armed and warhead launcher, giving the fighter a 360-degree field of fire and ability to deliver special ordnance. Although the pilot had the ability to fire all weapons, the turret was ideally controlled by the rear-facing gunner. The TIE also had enhanced deflector shields and high-yield cells that provided additional power to onboard systems.

But most importantly, the fighter was equipped with a hyperdrive to enable the fighter to go on long range missions far from a base or carrier ship.

That was what was going to get him and the Resistance pilot away from the _Finalizer_ and hopefully away from the entire First Order. Without a hyperdrive they were finished. FN-2187 did not care how good the Resistance pilot claimed to be. If they did not get out of the system as fast as they could they would either get shot down by other TIE's or blasted by the Star Destroyers.

Even as he walked to the base of the boarding staircase, he looked out of the hanger's shielded entrance to take in the image of the _Reclaimer_ hanging in orbit just a few miles away from the _Finalizer_.

It was just his typical luck that on the day he decided to make a run for it and desert the First Order, another Star Destroyer is there to try and shoot at him.

And not just any Star Destroyer will do, oh no.

He gets to try his appalling luck against the _Reclaimer_ itself. One of the most advanced ships in the First Order fleet. Filled to the brim with an experienced and capable crew. And commanded by the acting Grand Admiral of the entire First Order.

As if Kylo Ren and Phasma were not enough. He got the entire ruling triumvirate.

He knew of Admiral Kuvira. Hell, everyone in the Order new about Admiral Kuvira.

The children on the _Absolution_ or the other training ships or bases looked up to her as a role-model. They were constantly reminded that she started out like them. An unwanted orphan in a cesspool of a world. But through the 'mercy and kindnesses of the First Order, she worked her way up to commanding a fleet of hundreds of capital ships and millions of troops.

And now her authority was second only the Supreme Leader himself.

Soldiers on the frontlines, hoped that they would get posted to her command. They knew that under her they had the best chance of making it threw the battles alive and with a victory at the end.

Pilots wanted to be posted to the _Reclaimer_ as it was well known that during skirmishes that she could leave to her subordinates, she would take her personal TIE fighter into battle. The aspiring young pilots yearned to fly beside and learn from the one who had been one of the youngest flight commanders in the history of the galaxy.

Even the old guard. Imperial commanders and soldiers who had been at the head of the mass exodus of Imperial fleets and loyalists into the Unknown Regions wanted to meet her. From what he had heard, it was partially to see if she lived up to the rumours. Other times it was to try and bring down the young 'upstart' as they had once called her when they thought none could hear them.

However, those Imperial veterans had returned to their own individual commands with no such victory. They had either been forced into grudging acceptance that the young woman's tactical skill and battle strategies were very impressive. Or they had returned with nothing but admiration for their much younger commander.

In fact, rumour was that someone had once referred to her as _"Admiral Thrawn with tits."_

What had happened to the person who first said that derogatory phase, was one of the other most discussed stories about the Admiral.

And now, the person that inspired all those stories, all that devotion and respect. Would be doing her utmost to blast him to his component atoms.

He had to admit that what Admiral Kuvira had done at the village on Jakku had greatly relieved him. He had been dreading the order to execute the entire village. Admittedly he would not have minded shooting the villagers that had been firing at him. But even then, he would have preferred it to be in battle. As naïve as he knew it sounded, he wanted it to be fair.

He knew if Phasma heard him say such a think she would have him spaced…..if he was lucky.

But executing men, women and children who were beaten, who had surrendered. He did not have the ruthlessness in him to carry out that task. Although he knew Phasma would call it strength.

When the Admiral had stepped in and convinced the villagers to bend their knees and except the rule of the First Order he had a look of pure relief on his smiling face beneath his helmet. He had been delighted he had not been called on to kill the villagers.

But when the three stubborn defenders had refused to kneel he had been worried once again, that he would be called to execute them.

But then the Admiral had drawn her pistol and killed the three men before they could even react. He was in shock and for a few seconds wondered if he had imagined it. But then the Admiral turned around and he looked into her emerald eyes.

What he had seen there had been the final thing to drive him to desert and caused him to begin to think of a way to leave the First Order.

The eyes of the admiral had shone clear and resolute, even though she had just killed three people personally. They showed not a shred of regret or any sign that they were affected by what had just happened. They showed a resolve and ruthlessness that made it clear that she would do whatever was necessary to complete her mission. She would brook no failure, suffer no enemies, and allow no amount of collateral damage to deter her from what had to be done.

It was clear that she preferred to keep the bloodshed to a minimum by her actions in saving the rest of the village, and her missions elsewhere in the galaxy. But that was not out of concern for the lives of the people involved and it was defiantly not related to any principles regarding right and wrong.

It was simply a matter of efficiency. To ensure that the First Order benefited the most by increased reputation, citizenry, work force and propaganda. That was what it came down too. And if it would have benefitted the First Order to turn the entire village into a glass crater. He had no doubt she would have given that order with no hesitation.

In that moment he knew the one word to describe Admiral Kuvira; Pragmatic.

While it was better then serving under a vicious psychopath like Hux, it was still beyond what FN-2187 was willing to knowingly serve under.

And so, he found himself climbing the steps into this TIE fighter right now.

FN-2187 and Poe (wincing and still sore) dropped into the back-to-back cockpit. FN-2187 pulls off his helmet as Poe removes his cuffs and jacket, fires up the ship with excitement. "I always wanted to fly one of these things. Can you shoot?"

FN-2187 turns around to respond. "Blasters, I can!"

Poe nods. It was not ideal, but beggars couldn't be choosers. "Okay, same principal! Use the toggle on the left to switch between missiles, cannons, and mag pulse. Use the site on the right to aim, triggers to fire!"

FN-2187 turns back to look at the control console in front of him. He knows that to an experienced pilot it would make perfect sense. But all he sees is a mess of switches, buttons and flashing lights that he has no clue what to do with. He suddenly wishes he had tried to be placed in the pilot training program rather than the Stormtrooper core.

"This is very complicated."

Poe ignored that comment and tried to act as if this was just a routine flight or mission from D'qar. And not a situation that was looking more and more like lunacy. With a final check on the flight controls and the power levels, he began the ignition and eased the fighter out of the supports.

FWOOOOOOM! The TIE fighter lurches forward and moved out of the landing bay. Poe made every effort and whispered every prayer, that his flight looked casual and not out of place at all. He watched as the flight crews and other hanger personal moved about the hanger. None of them were looking at him and he hoped that nothing looked out of place.

He slowly turned the fighter toward the hanger entrance and began to move forward. Suddenly he felt the entire fighter bucked and jerked violently to a halt. Quickly inspecting his instruments, he cursed himself as an idiot.

He had been so focused on getting away as fast as possible. He had not even noticed that one of the maintenance hoses was still attached to the fighter. He felt like smacking himself, even a drunk rookie pilot Gamorreon with half a brain would not make such a stupid mistake!

"I can fix this." He said, partly to the Stormtrooper, partly to himself.

Reacting as fast as he could he began smashing at the controls trying to get the hose to detach. But no matter what he tried the damn thing wouldn't budge. And as the fighter kept getting jerked around on, the inevitable happened.

The hanger crewed would have to be blind, deaf and dumb not to notice that something was wrong and from the corner of his eye he saw them gesturing and beginning to run either towards or away from them.

He even saw that the stormtroopers were already setting up a portable battery cannon that was aimed directly at their fighter. He then heard the unmistakeable sound of blaster fire and the faint sounds of the bolts impacting against the fighter's armour. Thankfully, the fighter's armour was more than enough make their efforts useless.

In mounting desperation, he pounded the controls and urged the fighter forward at full speed, determined to break the kriffing cable. At the same time FN-2187 took hold of the weapons controls and fired.

Green laser blasts slammed into the ground and sent the troops flying, either in one piece or several, depending on how lucky they were. One blast even hit the hanger control room and caused an explosion to erupt from the chamber.

Poe urged the fighter forward with all his might and finally the cable detached and the TIE went zooming forward into the ether of space. Poe was thrown back into his seat amazed and more than a bit giddy at the power of the TIE fighter. But he admitted that might be a lingering effect of the drugs.

"Woooahhh! This thing really moves." He quickly turned the fighter around and headed for the underbelly of the _Finalizer_. "All right, we gotta take out as many cannons as we can or we're not gonna get very far!"

FN-2187 quickly got his head back in the game. "All right!"

"I'm gonna get us in position, just stay sharp! Poe flew toward the cannons that were already preparing to blast the two of them into dust. "Up ahead! Up ahead! You see it? I've got us dead centered. It's a clean shot."

FN-2187 nods as he quickly listened to the instructions that Poe was rattling off, aimed and fired.

 **Bridge of the Finalizer**

On the bridge of the _Finalizer_ Admiral Kuvira strode down the main walkway as the bridge crew milled about and consulted their instruments for the needed data.

Lieutenant Mitaka then calls up from the crew pit as he watches the monitor. "Ma'am, they've taken out our turbolasers."

Kuvira considered for less then a second before she voiced her commands. "Use the ventral cannons.". The lieutenant nodded "Yes, ma'am. Bringing them online."

As he turned back to his command console and began delegating the required orders to his subordinates, Kylo Ren entered the command bridge. He had briefly returned to his quarters to 'consider matters'. Apparently he had been roused by the increasing situation.

"Admiral Kuvira. Is it the Resistance pilot?" he demanded as he came to a stop in front of the Admiral. Kuvira turned to face him, her face as stoic as though it was carved from stone.

"Yes, and he had help. From one of our own". While her face remained icy, her voice allowed some of the vexed indignation to emerge. She turned away and made her way to the face the command console "We're checking the registers now to identify which Stormtrooper it was."

Kylo Ren didn't need to turn to inspect the console. Even without the force he would have known who the trooper was responsible. The look and stance of that particular soldier in the village could not have shouted his feelings any clearer. In hindsight he should have ordered that soldier to be detained and sent to reconditioning. At the time, he had considered it beneath him. He was the apprentice to the Supreme Leader, heir apparent to Darth Vader. He had no time to consider the issues of a random trooper!

An act of simple vanity, and one he was certain his grandfather would never have made. He admonished himself. But there was nothing to be done about it now, except do his utmost to resolve the issue.

"The one from the village. FN2187." He said, his voice almost a whisper.

Kuvira turned back to study him, her eye brow slightly raised in a silent question. She considered asking for confirmation on his information but decided against it. Mainly because there was no time. That stolen fighter was still fleeing at that moment, and every second was precious. In the end she chalked it up to his power in the Force. Still he once again acknowledges its usefulness and gestured to the Lieutenant, silently commanding him to stop the search and research that particular trooper.

"Ma'am. Ventral cannons hot." Lieutenant Mitaka proclaimed.

She nodded "Fire."

Captain Pandey came up to her from his previous position by the bridge windows. "Admiral, we can tractor the fighter back into the hanger once we get a lock with the beam. We run the risk of losing valuable information with the prisoner's death."

Kuvira turned to face him. "We have confirmation that the information we need is contained within a droid on the planet. The resistance pilot is therefore useless to us, and the traitor even more so. Destroy them both." Her tone of vice left no room for argument.

Mitaka nodded his understanding. "Firing now!"

 **TIE Fighter Cockpit**

"One's coming towards you. My right, your left. Do you see it?" Poe said hurriedly.

"Hold on! I see it!" The newly named Finn said, much in the same tone.

Finn blasted away with the fighter's cannons and after a few seconds one of the warheads was exploding into ash. However, the other missiles were still out there, chasing them like a Hutt chases profit. Poe suddenly veered away and shot down into Jakku's atmosphere. At first Finn thought it was an evasion tactic. But it soon became clear that it was not.

"Where are you going?" He demanded.

"We're going back to Jakku. That's where." Poe answered with the air of someone commenting on the weather.

Finn tuned (as much as the cockpit allowed him) to stare at Poe. He looked as though he could hardly credit his ears. "No no no! We can't go back to Jakku! We need to get outta this system!" He almost screamed.

This was not what he had signed up for. The unofficial deal was that he frees him and then they both get the hell out of here and vanish into the galaxy. Going back to the newly annexed dust ball, with an entire FO army on it was not part of the deal! All the while the fighter weaves and dodges near-miss laser blasts as Poe pilots aggressively.

"I got to get to my droid before the First Order does!" Poe explained.

"A droid!" Finn repeated incredulously. Clearly finding the explanation not good enough.

"That's right. He's a BB unit! Orange and white: one of a kind." Poe continued.

"I don't care what colour he is! No droid can be that important!" Finn responded.

"This one is, pal."

"We need to get as far away from the First Order as we can! We go back to Jakku, we die!"

"That droid's got a map that leads straight to Luke Skywalker!"

Finn could not believe his luck was this bad. "Oh, you gotta be kidding me! I….".

Apparently he luck could somehow get even worse. In the argument going on between the two unlikely allies, Poe had neglected his steering and Finn had let go of the weapon controls. They had been hit. Instantly the tie fighter sparks and smokes, spiralling out of control toward the surface of Jakku!

 **Bridge of the Finalizer**

Captain Phasma and Admiral Kuvira stand before a holographic projection detailing FN-2187's service records.

"FN-2187 reported to my division, was evaluated and sent to Reconditioning." Phasma stated in her usual calm monotonous tone of voice. The details of the service record and childhood of FN-2187 continued to display in front of the pair. Every facet of the trooper's life was on detailed and perfectly consistent record.

Admiral Kuvira studied the image of the traitor. Looking both at his current image, and the image of him as a child when he had first been brought into the Order. "No prior signs of non-conformity?" she asked.

Phasma's response was instant. "This was his first offense."

Kuvira's eyes narrowed for a faction of a second when she heard that. That answer had come too fast and with far too much conviction then it should have. Even if it hadn't, she had noticed the slight discrepancy in Phasma's voice pattern. Regardless it was clear that Phasma was not telling the truth, or at least not the full truth.

She considered the matter. It was likely that Phasma had noticed something in FN-2187's behaviour but had failed to mention it in the proper channels. Or this was not the first offense and she had failed to mention that properly. She had likely not considered the matter of great importance, or possibly had not wanted to appear that she could not control her soldiers.

Either way it was clear her negligence had almost cost the First Order dearly. It was only sheer fortune that the information they needed was in the droid, not with the pilot. If the situation had been different, she might have ordered Phasma to be questioned and disciplined as necessary.

However, such an action now would be counterproductive. The situation was more or less in hand, and it would not serve the First Order to create tension between her and her most competent Captain. Besides, while she might outrank Phasma, her popularity with the Stormtrooper core made punishing her on nothing but speculation, problematic.

"Admiral. They've been hit." The technician reported. Kuvira turned to face him.

"Destroyed?" She asked. The technician glanced down at the details on her datapad.

"Disabled. They were headed back to Jakku, the fighter's projected to crash in the Goazon badlands." He recited.

Kuvira understood instantly. "They were going back for the droid, send a squad to the wreckage. And I want a squadron in the air surveying the area around the crash site. If they find them, strafe them. And send troops to all the transport hubs and 'spaceports ports' on this hemisphere. If the traitor or the Resistance pilot are spotted, they are to report it and kill with them. The droid is the priority. It must be captured if at all possible. Or destroyed if necessary.

With the orders given Kuvira moved to stare out of the viewport of the _Finalizer's_ bridge. She observed Jakku, and considered if it was chance, fate or the Force that such an otherwise insignificant world continually played a key part in galaxy shaping events. She observed the _Reclaimer_ and despite herself, she briefly wished she was back aboard, patrolling the frontiers of their territory or battling border threats in the Unknown Regions.

But that was not where she was needed. The peace with the New Republic was breaking down and the Resistance were doubling their efforts to push the Senate to open war. While war was naturally the plan for the First Order to take back the galaxy. Kuvira sometimes wondered if they were over reaching too early.

The First Order had spent 30 years building up their strength, resources and territory. Meanwhile the New Republic had engaged in the bare minimum of military spending. The gap between the two forces was almost equal. And in terms of technological prowess, the First Order held a major advantage. They could afford to wait a little longer to build up their strength while the Republic atrophied.

Besides it was entirely possible that the New Republic would collapse within a few more years. The divide and squabbling between the Centrists, Populists and other various parties (the Core and Rim Factions) had deadlocked the Senate to the point that almost no laws or petitions were passed on Hosnian Prime these days. The economic situation was equally bad, with the New Republic being much smaller then the Empire or the Old Republic, they didn't have access to the resources or trading power that they had been. The divide in the senate also led to each side increasing tariffs against each other to the point that all trade was being chocked off.

All these problems were bleeding the New Republic dry, both in power and in prestige. In a couple of years its power would be impotent, and its patriotic reserves would be exhausted. Even the former leaders of the Rebel Alliance were losing faith in the Republic system they had fought to restore. The fact that they felt the need to form an independent force like the Resistance, separate from the New Republic proved that fact.

It might have been possible for the First Order to conquer the galaxy without much bloodshed in the wake of then New Republic's implosion. As, despite what the rebels had endlessly claimed, people wanted to be told what to do. They naturally craved order, and certainty, and desperately wanted someone else to take charge of the galaxy while they peacefully followed in their wake.

But with the possible return of Luke Skywalker to the Resistance and the Republic. The slow and carefully thought out strategy wasn't viable anymore. Now they had to act. And she must have faith that the Supreme Leader would choose the wisest course.

After all the whole reason that the First Order still existed was due to the Supreme Leader. When the Imperial remnant fleets had arrived in the Unknown Regions, they had nearly meet with destruction. Despite the best efforts of leaders like Grand Admiral Sloane (a great idol of Kuvira's) they had simply not been prepared for the task.

It was the Supreme Leader that had saved them. And it was under his leadership that the First Order had not only survived but thrived.

They had survived because they trusted him to know best and choose the wisest course. And now she would trust him again.

If he ordered her to lead their fleet to war, then so be it.

She felt the presence of Kylo Ren behind her and she turned away from her private musing and walked with him down the main bridge walkway. It didn't take long for Ren to make his opinion on her orders clear. But she was ready with her own statement.

"Supreme Leader Snoke was explicit. Capture the droid if we can but destroy it if we must." She stated simply.

Kylo didn't address that but asked another expected question. "How capable are your soldiers, Admiral?"

She did not turn her head to face him as she answered, instead staring straight forward. "As capable as they need to be to complete the mission Lord Ren." Her unusually formality which she used for his name was noticeable. Kylo ignored the warning.

"They're obviously skilled at committing high treason. Perhaps Leader Snoke should consider using a clone army." He stated in a mocking jest. While he and Kuvira had a good relationship, he needed the serenity of this desertion to be understood.

However, the Admiral suddenly stopped and shot out her left arm to block his path. She turned to face him and spoke in a hushed tone. (After all it would not do to have two of the highest commanding leaders be seen in a full argument on the bridge).

"I will not have you insulting my soldiers in my presence Lord Ren. The traitor will be dealt with but the rest of them have served the First Order with all their soul for their entire lives. And many of them have given their lives in its service, so don't you dare ever question their loyalty!" She snarled.

Kylo Ren was momentarily taken aback. He knew that Kuvira was not careless with the lives of her troops, and that she had done a lot for their improved live, such as extended leisure time between shifts, improved meals and even limited vacation leave at First Order R&R facilities. But he seemed to have underestimated the extent of that loyalty and devotion.

However instead of being angry at his authority and opinions being dismissed and being partially threatened. He found instead that his respect for the Admiral continued to grow. It was something that the commanders Darth Vader had served with would never have done. It was also a gesture that Vader would also have respected.

"Then they should have no problem retrieving the droid. Unharmed." He said. This time however his tone was not mocking

In turn Kuvira reduced her tone to simply factual. "I will endeavour to capture the droid intact, Ren. But I will not place your "personal interests" over the direct orders from Leader Snoke."

Ren considered for a second, then nodded his acceptance. "I want that map. I will trust you to use every opportunity to acquire it Admiral.

With that Ren turned and walked away, leaving Kuvira to consider the situation for a second, before she activated her personal comm. "Alert my shuttle to prepare for launch back to the _Reclaimer_ immediately." She ordered.

 **Jakku - Goazon Badlands**

On the burning desert sands of Jakku, Finn woke with a start. He goes from unconscious to terrified, fast, as he remembers the pain and the fear he felt as he fell from the heavens. He sits up and after shielding his eyes from the intense glare of the sun, looks around.

He sat in the middle of an epic desert with sand dunes stretching as far as he could see in every direction. A black emergency chute blows in the wind behind him. The scattered debris of his part of the stolen TIE fighter lie strewn all about him, a lot of it smoking.

Then he sees over distant dunes, rising black smoke. He scrambled to his feet and quickly began moving toward it, calling out: "Poe, POE!" with increasing desperation.

Finn scrambled over the massive dune towards the tie fighter's final resting place. Smoke and fire burn and smoulder everywhere around the small crater made in the soft sand. Small debris once again lies scattered around it. Suddenly he thought he saw Poe's arm sticking out of the sand beneath the wreckage. Leaping forward with more speed and urgency then he ever had done before, he pulls on it, but it's just Poe's jacket. He threw it off and tries to find a way in to the shattered remains of the cockpit or even just a way to look inside, but the smoke and heat make it impossible.

Suddenly the ship begins to sink, like it's being consumed into quicksand or possibly a sarlacc pit. Before Finn can question which scenario would be worse he realises that he is slipping in too.

It becomes clear fast that if Finn doesn't get away, he's gonna get sucked in too! After a moment of hesitating, Finn decides that there is nothing he can do for Poe anymore and so Finn scampers away from the TIE fighter as it sinks into the sand.

As Finn turns away from the remains of the TIE and what he can only assume is Poe's eternal resting place. He suddenly takes stock of his own situation. In front of him are endless sand dunes. Behind him are more sand dunes. To the left and the right, in every conceivable direction there is nothing but endless, burning, life choking sand.

He tries to decide which direction has the best chance of leading to some form of civilisation. He knows he is nowhere near the new First Order outpost that used to be Tekka's village. And even if he had been, he would have only had a blaster bolt to the head to expect in that place.

Eventually deciding that each direction looked equally hopeless, Finn simply chose one at random, and started walking.


	4. Chapter 4 - The Plot Thickens

**Chapter 4 – The Plot Thickens.**

 **Finn POV**

Water... water... water..

Finn staggered though the village, outpost?. He ran towards everyone with a desperation that was bordering on madness. He grabbed at their clothes and in some cases even shook them with what little strength he still possessed in his desperate frenzy.

The locals, probably use to this kind of behaviour from stupid off-worlders or locals who wandered into the desert without proper preparation, ignored and brushed him off.

In a heatstroke daze, he moved past enormous old ship parts, merchants, scavengers and tented stalls that made up the outpost. His eyes (which also somehow felt dried out) scanned the area for any source of salvation.

Water... water... water..

Finally, he sees a water trough where a filthy, slobbering hippo-like creature (a Happabore) drinks. Elated, Finn moves to it, uses his hands to desperately drink the filthy water. After a couple swallows he spits it out, disgusted.

"Awgh, GAH!"

The water was possibly the most disgusting thing he had ever tasted. It was like what he imagined a decaying Hutt tasted like. The First Order food he had when he was young had been bland and simple. Then when the new policy's Admiral Kuvira introduced, they had gotten much better, and more varied.

But nothing came close the disgusting water in front of him.

But even as he contemplates its foulness, he finds himself leaning back for more. Between a mortally wounded sense of taste, or death…he would take the rancid water.

After a few more disgusting mouthfuls he felt the creature beside him push him aside with its bulk. It was clearly not willing to share its precious water with him. Thankfully he had got enough to take the edge of his dehydration away.

Moving away from the water trough he made his way aimlessly back towards the interior of the village. He had no clue what he was even looking for, or what he should be doing.

A second ago, his highest and only concern was staying alive. Before that in the TIE fighter, his main concern had been to get out of this system, away from the First Order and to vanish into the galaxy.

Now, what now?

He had no money, no friends, no prospects and no hope.

He was on a planet controlled by the First Order, it would not be long until troopers would be deployed to this outpost and all the others. He would be recognised, arrested and executed for treason. The best he could hope for was death by blasters, instead of laser axes.

In fact, he could very well imagine that his old squad, his friends, Zeroes and Nines would be the ones to wield them. He doubted that his betrayal would go down well with them. He should have realised that before he left, but the realisation still hurt.

As he came out of his whirlwind of thoughts and back to himself, he noticed a scuffle for the first time right in front of him.

A young woman, roughly his age and judging by her clothes, a local, was being accosted by two thugs. Feeling a small sense of chivalry, (which overrode the sense of self preservation telling him to remain discrete) he made his way to help her.

Suddenly he stopped as he saw that the girl, he previously thought as a victim, began to fight back with her metal staff. She was clearly scrappy and with a slightly feral attitude, she kicked, bite and hit her assailants. Finn is taken aback as she defeats the attackers, who hit the sand, hard, and did not get up again.

As he watched, he saw her kneel down and remove a ratty tarp from the ground to reveal…..An orange and white BB-8 droid.

Poe's Droid!

There was absolutely no doubt in his mind. BB-8 units were new and thereby expensive. And Jakku, was the last place in the galaxy where that criteria were met. Even if that was not the case the droid was exactly as Poe had described.

Orange and white paint job, and a large dark optical orb that was looking directly at …. HIM!

Yes, the droid was looking directly at him, and as he watched it began to look back and forth between him and the girl, clearly explaining something to her. And whatever the explanation was, it did not appear to be making either droid or girl calm or please with him

As he watched, the girl snatched up her staff and began to sprint towards him!

Realizing he's the target, Finn begins to run away from her, back through the tent marketplace. Pushing people out of the way as he flees. He is not entirely sure, why he was running from her, but he figured he was just used to running away by now.

However, as he turned a corner he felt a blinding pain in his face and stars fly across his vision along with the sensation of his feet leaving the ground. And before he knew it, he was lying on his back with the metal staff aimed at his chest. And the girls furious face staring down at him.

Out of breath and very freaked out, all he could do was lie there and wait.

"What's your hurry, thief?!" She snarled.

Finn blinked in confusion, and the sound of his head still ringing.

"What-?! Thief?"

BB-8 rolled up fast and moved towards Finn, a welding arm telescopes from his body and shocks Finn, causing him to yelp.

"OW! HEY! What?!"

The girl stepped forward and the droid mercifully backed off and stopped shocking him!

"The jacket! This droid says you stole it!" The girl snarled, her staff never leaving its position over his prone body.

Realisation finally hit Finn. The Jacket and the droid, of course the droid would recognise it. And on a word like Jakku (not known for its friendly locals) and the line of work that Poe was in. It was not hard to come to the conclusion, that the droid clearly had.

He could even understand it. But, given all that he had endured today and the many near death experiences he had today, he was really not in the mood for this crap!

"I've had a pretty messed up day, alright?! So, I'd appreciate it you stop accusing me - OW!"

BB-8 zapped him again. "STOP IT!" he yelled.

Instead of making the droid leave him alone the desert girl instead pressed her apparent interrogation. "Where'd you get it? It belongs to his master." She demanded. Her staff never leaving its position to strike.

Finn looks at her - then the agitated droid, Finn's mind was racing, trying desperately to take in and process all the events of this messed up day. Finally, he thinks he has put it all together, and he only finds himself more frustrated.

But seeing as there is nowhere to go, aside from along with this new situation he sighs heavily and looks back at the girl and droid. He knew he needed to respond somehow.

So, he makes a hard decision: to tell the truth, or at least as much of the truth as he thought he should tell, given the situation. "It belonged to Poe Dameron. That was his name, right?" He asked turning to the droid (which still kept its electro prod extended and ready).

BB-8 seems taken aback by the sound of the name and the girl looked to him for confirmation. The droid turns to face her, then turns back to Finn, clearly confused. In the stunned silence, Finn decides that now was probably the time to keep talking.

If he wanted to avoid more shocks or smacks with the staff.

"He was captured... by the First Order. I helped him escape but our ship crashed."

He took a pause as he unwillingly relived the moment when the ship was hit and began plummeting to the ground. In that moment he had been 100% certain he was going to die. Then the almost equally painful moment when he had been unable to save Poe emerged from his memory.

He had not known Poe well. Barely at all even. Even he and Poe had known right away that it was an alliance of convenience. A way for him to leave the First Order alive, and a way for Poe to get back to BB-8 and the Resistance.

Even if all had gone well and they had left the system with all they needed, Finn had no intention of deserting one army only to join up with another.

But still, even in the brief time that he and Poe had worked together, he had come to respect him. Maybe he had even begun to like him.

"Poe didn't make it." He said sadly, as he looked towards BB-8. The droid lowered its 'head' had let out a mournful sound.

"Look, I tried to help him. I'm sorry..." He whispers.

They girl watches BB-8, then considers Finn again.

She says, with a tone of voice that sounded bit impressed. "So, you're with the Resistance?" She asks, in a way that seems to appear…hopeful?

Finn's mind races again. This time he makes an easy decision when it comes to what truth to tell….. LIE, LIE, LIE!

"Obviously. Yes. I am. I'm with the Resistance, yeah. I'm with the Resistance". He whispered. He silently curses himself. His lie was so obvious a Gamorreon would have been able to see through it. He braced himself for more shocks or blows, (which ever came first).

Instead, the girl lowers her staff and looks at him with an appraising look as he stands up and brushes the sand from his clothes.

"I've never met a Resistance fighter before." She says.

Finn feels himself growing even more desperate for her to believe his story, as he starts rambling. "Well, this is what we look like. Some of us. Others look different." He babbled, silently telling himself to shut up!

Thankfully the girl doesn't seem to notice. She turns to regard the droid at their feet. "BB-8 says he's on a secret mission, he has to get back to your base." She insisted. Behind her Finn rolls his eyes as he remembers the context of the situation he has somehow landed himself in.

"Apparently he's carrying a map that leads to Luke Skywalker, and everyone's after it." He mutters as he once again curses the universe for his luck.

She turns to him, concerned, curious. And asks "Luke Skywalker? I thought he was a myth?" She said with a mix of disbelief and wonder.

Before he could answer her, just then BB-8 beeps madly at something he sees.

"What is it?" The girl asks as she moves over to him.

Looking out from the flap of the ram shackle shelter that made up most of the outpost. And what she saw somehow amazed and concerned her both at once. She can't really make sense of what she is seeing, but Finn comes up behind her, and he understands perfectly.

A First Order AAL-1971/9.1 Troop Transport had landed on the outskirts of the outpost and opened its exit ramp. Stormtroopers began to disembark. But unlike at Tekka's village, they were not rushing out of the transport to attack. Instead they were marching out of the transport in parade formation and speed, with a black clad junior officer at their head.

The troopers began to file out across the outpost while the officer made his way to the small salvage centre, run by a disgusting blubber filled (mostly) humanoid creature that made Finn's skin crawl.

The troopers took up position by the salvage cleaning station, the water dispenser, the shipyard, and at the various main entrance points. The officer was still talking to the creature, that was identified as Unkar Plutt, by a whispered snarl from the girl as they hid behind the fabric.

Whatever they were talking about it seemed that the conversation was amicable and expected as the officer moved back to the transport and began talking to a holo com, and Plutt went back to his stand as the troopers continued to adjust to their new garrison duties.

The girl clearly was at a loss as to what was happening. But Finn understood.

He remembered that Admiral Kuvira mentioned that the New Republic had sold Jakku to the First Order for a paltry sum of credits.

Standard First Order military doctrine stated that newly annex (occupied) worlds were to receive garrisons at all major settlements and for officers of the Ministry of Logistics, to be placed alongside the civilian government to ensure that the world continued to function (and provide) under the new administration.

He supposed on a world like Jakku, this was as close as you got to a 'major settlement'.

And once again, the universe loved to show him how awful his fortune was. Even as he watches, the creature called Plutt, was talking to two Stormtroopers and pointing at them.

Finn urgently grabs the girls hand and heads for the tents, in rising panic.

"What are you doing?" She asks indignantly.

Finn had no time to explain to her the level of danger they were in. "Come on!" He said, as he continued running.

Suddenly laser blasts rip past them and hit the cleaning unit. The intense heat of the blaster bolt causes spewing steam to rise up the scavengers working at the table to duck and cover. The girl screamed as more blasts came their way and they continue to run, with the droid rolling behind them.

"Come on, BB-8!" Finn yelled to the following droid

"Let go of me!" The girl said

Finn shook his head as he ran. "No, we gotta move!"

She ripped her hand free from his grasp. "I know how to run without you holding my hand! BB-8 stay close! This way!"

Now following her lead, Finn and BB-8 run after her as another blast just missed them! They disappeared through a tent, and then another, trying to break their pursuers line of sight.

Meanwhile the Stormtroopers emerge from a tent, having momentarily lost their target. They take a moment to search the fleeing civilians and the area's they can see.

Seeing nothing, the raised their comlink. "Call in the air strike!"

 **Bridge of the Reclaimer**

The call for the Airstrike was immediately relayed to the comms officer on the Reclaimer and he turned to issue order to the hanger bay.

"TIE squadron 3, prepare to embark and head for co-ordinates 41°24'12.2"N 2°10'26.5"E. Settlement by the name of 'Nima Outpost, two fugitives in possession of the droid, the traitor and a local female. Detain if possible, destroy if necessary."

The reply from the hanger temporary control room, (because Finn blasted the main one) comes immediately. "Acknowledged and Understood."

"Tell them to prepare to launch, but do not depart until my arrival." A cool and measured voice says from above the comm officer. Looking up he sees Admiral Kuvira standing in her personal flight suit, with her pilot helmet tucked under her arm.

"Admiral?" He asks in confusion

"I will be leading this mission personally. Tell the hanger to prepare my TIE fighter and to prepare the fighter squadron to form up on me when we depart." She stated, her orders clear and concise.

The comms officer blinks for a second while he finds his tongue. "Admiral, the fighter commander will be able to handle the situation. And with all respect we cannot risk your safety on such a mission." He argues as firmly, yet respectfully as he knew how.

Kuvira raised a delicately plucked eyebrow. "The mission is just that important lieutenant. The droid, is of vital importance, and I refuse to luxuriate on the Reclaimer while our pilots struggle to win us victory. Now every second we stand her the droid gets further away, so relay my orders lieutenant. She commanded, her voice remaining calm, but taking on an unmistakable air of warning.

The comms officer visibly gulped. "At once Admiral." He said, turning back to his station to do just that.

Kuvira nodded and minutes later, a Black Special Forces TIE fighter shot out of the Reclaimer's hanger with three escort TIE's.

Together they formed up and dived down towards the planet surface.

 **Finn's POV**

"Stop taking my hand!" The girl snapped as he dragged her through the outpost towards the entrance to the 'spaceport?' Or at least the small parking zone that seemed to act as this place's space port.

He briefly wondered why he was bothering to drag her along behind him. She was just a local who happened to stumble across a droid that wasn't his, containing information that was not relevant to him.

She was not his problem, and he was not her problem! So why was he throwing himself deeper into this, instead of running as far away from that damn droid as he could?!

In the end he decided to focus all of his concentration to running for his life. At least for the moment.

The iconic scream of TIE fighters could be hear overhead. But for some reason they were not opening fire.

He figured that was due to Admiral Kuvira's orders regarding this planet new annexation status. She did not want to fire blindly into an inhabited outpost and cause the locals to turn against the First Order. Personally, considering that a single Star destroyer probably held more people then all of Jakku did, he was surprised she would bother to show such restraint.

But that was Kuvira. Always considering the long-term situation, the big picture.

However, he had no doubt that once they and the droid were cleared of the tents and in the open the fighters would open fire.

Unfortunately, he was proven right about that.

As they race from the tent area, a TIE fighter screams into view from behind the tents! A second follows close behind. It fires at them, and a massive blast sends the girl and Finn flying into the air to land with an ungracious thud on the sands. BB-8 is also sent rolling along with them.

Finn rolls over and sees the girl looking at him while shaking him to get to his feet. He sat up and looked into her face.

"Are you ok?" He asked.

The girl looked stunned, as though she had never heard those words before. Given the kind of place Jakku is, maybe she hadn't.

The girl nodded her answer. "Yeah."

She extended her hand and hauled him to his feet. "Follow me!"

They set off at a run for the spaceport with the TIE's circling back around for another strafing run. Even through he is keeping his eyes firmly ahead of him and trying with all his might to not look back, he knows one thing for a fact.

"We can't outrun them!" He yells to the girl as she runs ahead of him and BB-8.

However, the girl pointed to a parked, four-engine ship ahead. "We might in that quad-jumper!" She proclaimed as he ran towards it. However, Finn felt the need to point out the obvious flaw.

"We need a pilot!" He yelled with frustration at their situation.

"We've got one!" She said gesturing to herself as they ran.

"YOU?!" Finn tried desperately to not think about the fact that he was trusting her on this. But he could not help but consider that he was about to get in a ship that would be piloted by a girl who had not only never flown before. But had in fact, very probably never even been off world before.

He really wished that Poe was still alive right now.

As he kept running he noticed another ship parked in the spaceport. It looked like trash, but it was a lot nearer to them.

"What about that ship?" He asked

She quickly looked where he was gesturing and scoffed. "That one's garbage!"

They run for the jumper, but the passing tie fighters clearly understand what they are planning. They fire at it, blowing it apart in a huge flame ball! Finn and the girl come to a skidding stop as they observe the ruined wreak of what a few seconds ago was their salvation.

"The garbage will do!" she proclaimed and ran to the dilapidated YT-1300 Corellian light freighter. Meanwhile the TIE fighters bank around again, coming in for a third strafing run. Or maybe they were intending to destroy the ship with them aboard and be done with it. Finn, the girl and BB-8 run up the ramp of the semi-tarped ship and scrambled to find the cockpit entrance.

The girl flung herself down into the cockpit and started the start-up sequence. "Gunner position's down there!" She yelled to Finn

He nodded and scrambled down the ladder to the gunnery battery. Finn buckled into the gunner seat and too his shock, the seat whips to the left, startling him and he grabbed the controls to steady himself.

"Whoa! I can do this, I can do this…." He hoped. He was unaware that his impromptu pilot was repeating the exact same words to herself.

The ship rose of the ground, albeit wildly and its protective tarps fly off. The ship suddenly spins and tilts, slamming into and destroying the town's archway. Then the ship blasts away, with three TIE fighters chase it, fast!

 **Kuvira POV (SF TIE Fighter)**

Kuvira sat in the cockpit of her personal starfighter and watched as the beat-up YT-1300 managed to haul itself into the sky (without breaking apart somehow) and shot off across the endless Jakku desert.

She knew that ship.

She had never seen it personally before now, but she had seen it in pictures, holomaps and diagnostic readouts for years. She had studied diligently, trying to understand how such a beat-up piece of junk could have caused the galaxy changing events that it had.

The Millennium Falcon was a great mystery to the Admiral.

And now, here it was again. Once again, somehow this flying scrap heap had appeared to aid the rebels and their infuriating cause yet again. It was almost as if she could hear the ship itself laughing at her and the entire First Order. Like it had gained its own sentience and was a passionate believer in the rebel cause in its own right.

It would certainly explain some of its insane good fortune.

But now she was determined to do what even the likes of Darth Vader had not achieved. The complete destruction of the kriffing Millennium Falcon. Once and for all!

She engaged her drive and shot off in pursuit, she also commed her escort pilots and opened the communication channel. "Form up on, me and stay in attack formation. Make every effort to destroy that ship." She commanded. She would have preferred to capture the ship. Both to recover the droid data for their own purpose, and the fact that the Falcon would make a fantastic trophy in the First Order's possession.

But the stakes were too high, and this ship had a well-earned reputation for slipping the net too many times. She would not risk this mission and the entire First Order for something like personal vanity.

She banked her fighter to the right and she streaked around a large sand dune and brought the Falcon back into her viewpoint. She fired her cannons and watched as the bolts slammed into the ships shields.

She frowned. She had hoped that the falcon's shields were inoperable, or perhaps the pilot had not had time to active them in the mad scramble to take off. However, it seemed the ships unnatural luck was still holding.

She fired again and saw more bolts smash into the ship before the falcon banked downwards and started to streak away just a few metres above the sands. The cannon on the belly of the ship opened up and filled the space between them with red lines of energy.

She pulled back on her controls and brought her fighter out of sight of the belly cannon and placed herself almost on top of the ship and she fired down on to the roof of the ship. The cannon on the top of the Falcon appeared to be inactive. Possibly due to the power cores or another mechanical issue. But the more likely reason was simply a lack of an available gunner.

Her green blasts slammed down on to the ship and the force of the impact drove the vessel down further to the ground. The ship nearly smashed directly into the sand. But the pilot managed to veer off at the last second and gain some more altitude.

The falcon swung round and bolted towards a wreckage field that rose up from the sands to the south west. She immediately chased after them, with her two pilots on her flanks.

As she followed her target, she flew by the remains of an Imperial class Star destroyer. The front of the once mighty warship was buckled in and at an angle to the main body of the vessel. Clearly the ship and ran into the surface of Jakku with so much force that it broke into two pieces.

The sight made her gripped her flight controls tighter and steeled her resolve to destroy that damn ship.

But instead of shooting into the sky and outer space like she expected. The Falcon instead headed for the starship wreckage. She frowns, before she realises that the pilot is looking for cover and hoping to lose them in the maze of debris.

She drives her fighter forward, firing as he goes, but the Falcon manages to avoid the green blasts and heads directly for the remains of another Stardestroyer, weaving and ducking around the dunes and the oncoming laser blasts.

The Falcon was leading them to a massive spear of metal debris that covered a number of kilometres of the space. Kuvira watched as the Falcon reduced speed and shot straight down the centre of the mountain of metal. Surmising what the pilots plan of action was she also reduced her speed and gripped the controls of her fighter tightly. Her muscles and nerve ending tensed as she prepared to reacts within a moments notice.

Her preparation soon proved to be warranted.

Just as the Falcon's collision with the Star Destroyer carcass appeared to be inevitable, the ship pulled off an almost 95-degree angle turn to the left and darted along the left side of the debris field!

Kuvira quickly made the same turn and brought her fighter to bear on the falcon again, hammering it with blaster bolts. She noticed via her instruments that on of her co pilots had managed to follow her. However, the other appeared to have been forced to fly on the other side of the star ship wreckage.

She signed. She supposed that some of their training programs had sacrificed tactical awareness for single-minded focus on the mission objective. She might need to look in to that potential flaw.

The under cannon of the Falcon continued to fire back at them and she was forced to spin her fighter out of the way as the red beams went flying past.

A sudden explosion and the loss of the fighter on her display monitor, showed that the Falcon had scored a direct hit on her comrade's wing panel. As she watched the fighter spun out of control and plummeted to the desert surface near the base of the wreckage.

She quickly cut the com connection with the downed pilot. Hearing his dying screams was not something she wanted to subject herself to. Plus, it would only serve to further distract her.

Already she could see scavengers moving to the crash site of the newer and much more valuable ship. Her lip curled in disgust. Their attitude reminded her of Kath Hounds, running to a freshly downed Boma beast to feed on its corpse.

Keeping her anger in check she re focused on the Falcon and unleashed a hail of blaster bolts at the ship, aiming specifically at the belly cannon. The pilot was good and kept the falcon in evasive manoeuvres. But she eventually landed a direct hit on the cannon and she watched as it turned to face directly to the ground and not move at all.

Clearly it had been disabled.

She considered for a second. Disabled was good but destroyed was better.

She aimed and fired again, once more she hit the cannon and this time the entire artillery piece was blown off the apparatus!

Perfect, now the ship had no means of fighting back. All it could do was evade, and that would not last forever.

The Falcon continued to dodge and weave as she poured green blasts into the sky, when suddenly the ship performed an almost 360-degree manoeuvre and shot down into the remains of the engine funnel of the wreck of a Super Star Destroyer.

Kuvira was momentarily surprised at the pilots clearly desperate gamble. But considering their situation, it was a reasonable smart move. If they could navigate the wreck and not crash into a burning ruin, they just might be able to lose their pursuit and escape.

Kuvira absently concluded that the wreck was the remains of the Ravager. The flagship of her idol and role model, Grand Admiral Rae Sloane. But now was not the time for trivia or sightseeing.

And she was not stupid enough to chase after them like a charging Reek.

She commed her fellow remaining pilot and relayed her orders. "Form up on me and gain altitude above the remains of the Star Destroyer. I want all of the area visible and monitored. From that height we will be able to see them wherever they come out of the ruin. Once they emerge from the wreck, perform strafing manoeuvres from above.

"Understood Admiral."

 **Rey's POV**

Rey wondered if she was crazy to fly a ship that was a few years past its prime into the crumbling wreck of a Super Star Destroyer, in the vague hope that it would help them lose their pursuers.

Certainly Finn (as he had introduced himself) thought so. He had come up to the cockpit once the gunning battery had been destroyed and decided to offer his opinion on her choice of route.

"Are you crazy?!" He almost screamed. To be honest she was starting to think that she was.

"Do you have a better idea?!" She yelled back as she fought to move their ship down the randomly changing 'path' of the star destroyer's rusting insides. It required her total focus to keep the ship from smashing into the metal structure and turning them both to flaming organic paste.

She could only thank the Force that the TIE fighters had not been brave enough to follow them and had hopefully broken off their pursuit.

Seeing an opening in the right side of the destroyer she banked a tight right and brought them outside into the desert sky once again. The sand stretched out before them, the sky cloudless (as always) and a sandstorm on the horizon. Even if she had cursed the harshness of Jakku many times in her life, she had it admit, it had a fierce beauty to it.

Especially from a spaceship.

She turned the ship away from the sight and quickly scanned their surroundings. There was no sign of the TIE fighters or any other ship for that matter, so she decided now was the time to get into space and leave the planet before they came back.

"We should leave now, while we have the chance. You ok back there little guy?" She called to BB-8 who was currently suspended above the floor by cables he had dug into the walls for purchase during the chase.

The droid beeped an affirmative but did not release its cable restraints just yet.

Rey began to raise the ship up into the sky, intending to break out of the atmosphere and head for hyperspace as fast as possible. While she was confident that they had lost the TIE's she had been told by Finn that two star destroyers were in orbit.

For a moment she was excited by the news. She had spent most of her life crawling through the wrecks of star destroyers left on Jakku. The idea of seeing intact working ones up close was an alluring idea. Especially as the Resurgent class model was meant to be even bigger and much more advanced.

But when she remembered that those same massive advanced ships would probably be shooting at her, she decided that maybe it was not worth it.

She turned to face Finn as she continued to bring the ship higher. "Where is your base? We will need the hyperspace coordinates as soon as we leave the planet." She asked, as she turned back to face him. Finn must have been reluctant to give up such important secret information to a non-resistance member. He seemed to struggle with the question intensely.

"Well we should probably, umm, you see I can't just…. maybe we caAAAARRRRGGGHHH!

The explosion that threw Finn from his feet, flung her out of the pilot's chair and rocked the entire cockpit, also sent the Falcon plummeting out of the sky. The ship spun out of control and flipped end over end towards the unrelenting ground.

In the few moments that it took Rey to climb back into the pilot chair she saw the two remaining TIE's bearing down on them through the duroplast viewing screen. They filled the sky with green energy that continued to slam into the ship.

A second later a new alarm joined the chorus to announce that the shields had failed in the face of the onslaught.

Fighting back the flood of dizziness and nausea that was building up inside her Rey fought with all her might to bring the ship level again and re-engage the shields, even as energy bolts slammed into the ships armoured hull.

She managed to right the ship and bring it out of the free fall with only moments to spare as they went streaking away from the Ravager so low that the sand was kicked up from the path of the ship.

"What's the plan?" Finn asked in his tense voice as they continued to dodge and weave as best that they could in the low altitude and with the green energy blasts firing all around them.

Rey considered desperately but the Ravager fly through had been her only play.

Until she once again noticed the sandstorm on the horizon.

With nothing left to try, she thrust the ignition stick forward as far as it would go and drove the ship directly into the swirling mass of sand.

The visibility granted by the cockpit vanished immediately behind a massive of dirt fragments that made it impossible to see beyond two feet in front of the ship even with the forward lights ignited.

Rey knew that there was no way for the TIE's to track them in this mass of swirling sand. Their instruments would be flooded by the mass of airborne sand matter. And they would be completely unable to track them by line of sight.

Still she saw a few green flashes in the dust clouds as the TIE fighters fired randomly into the brown oblivion, clearly hoping that they might be luck and hit them.

But she also knew that they could not stay in the depths of the storm for ever. They had been flying low when they had entered the storm. And right now, with them not being able to see any better then the First Order pilots. There was a very good change of crashing into the side of a dune or into another space ship wreck.

After a few more seconds past and the flashes of green light in the sandstorm faded away, she took the chance.

She pulled back as hard on the flight controls as she could and the damaged, smoking, dust clogged, partially on fire, ship shot up almost vertically out of the sandstorm into the bright blue sky of Jakku.

There was no sign of the TIE's and no green blasts pursued her as she drove the ship through the atmosphere and watched as the blue of the sky gave way to the black star-studded canvas of space.

She had no time to even ask Finn for the hyperspace details. Instead she simply accesses the navi-computer and instructs it to go to the last known hyperspace coordinates from its memory.

Where ever it is, it had to be less dangerous then staying here.

As the stars turn to streaks of blue light before the cockpit viewing screen, she turned her head to stare back at Jakku one more time.

She would be back once Finn and the droid were dropped off at their base. Then she would return and…. what?

Continue to wait she supposed. For her parents to come back for her, like she knew they would. She just hoped that by some cruel twist of fate they did not return while she was off world.

Strangely as the black of space gave way to the swirling blue of hyperspace. The main thought she had was how she was going to deal with Plutt, when she got back, after stealing his ship?

 **Kuvira - POV**

Kuvira directed her fighter out of the sandstorm and increased her altitude, hoping to see the Falcon dart out of the dust bowl any second.

But nothing happened. And after a moment of observation she was forced to accept what had clearly happened.

The droid and the pilots were probably long gone out of the system by now.

She frowned in disappointment before she opened her personal comm to the Reclaimer.

"Tell Kylo Ren that I am returning to the Finalizer immediately. We are to report the situation to the Supreme Leader."


	5. Chapter 5 - Stress and Tension

**Chapter 5 –Stress & Tension **

**Bridge of the Finalizer**

Lieutenant Mitaka moves to Ren, who looks out across the star field displayed on the tactical read out in front of him. Mitaka swallows, his facial features and his posture show that he is clearly uneasy with his task.

Kylo Ren stood completely still as he watched the monitor. His back was to Mitaka and his hood was drawn back, showing the rarely seen back of his mask which showed long black hair peaking out from the seam.

Mitaka was dearly wishing he was anywhere else right now. But he was a Lieutenant in the First Order, and he had a duty to perform. Even if it might well be the last duty that he would ever perform. Swallowing to get rid of the massive lump in his throat he began to speak.

"Sir. We were unable to acquire the droid on Jakku." He stated flatly, deciding that direct candour would serve him best.

Kylo Ren seemed not to have heard him at first. Then he slowly turned his head t study Mitaka directly. Mitaka decided that this was his best chance to get all the bad news out at once and as fast as possible.

"It escaped capture aboard a stolen Corellian YT model freighter." He continued in a slightly rushed tone.

Ren let the silence hang for a second, before responding. "The droid... stole a freighter?" He asked, in a tone caught between surprise and sarcasm. Mitaka began to sweat, even in the Finalizer's air-conditioned bridge.

"Not exactly, sir. It had help." At these words Kylo Ren turned to face him fully. Somehow he doubted that was a good sign. But he pressed on. "We have no confirmation, but we believe FN-2187 may have been helped in the escape…."

He got no further

Ren pulled out his lightsaber and ignited the crackling red blade into life. Its cross-guard blades activating a split second later. Ren raised the blade and Mitaka instinctively raised his hands to protect himself, even though he knew the energy blade would shear through it like paper.

However, after he braced himself for death, he felt nothing, and after a second he cracked open his eyes.

Kylo Ren was hacking and slashing his saber across the console he had been studying a moment ago, the blade creating glowing lines of molten metal as the console was sheared apart by the rage fuelled warrior. The onslaught did not stop as Ren continued to swing his red blade wildly and his fury almost seemed to be creating the burning fires that now lit up the room.

As sparks flew by him, Mitaka was just thankful, that (for the moment) he was not the focus of Lord Ren's rage. He closed his eyes again and prayed to the Force that he would not be next.

However suddenly the noise halted and the screaming sound of the slashing lightsaber settled back into a steady hum. Once more, he slowly opened his eyes.

The red lightsaber was held aloft in the black gloved hand of Kylo Ren as if it was prepared to be brought down on the console once again. However, that was not the only hand holding the weapon's hilt.

Clasped firmly around the hilt and the closed fist around it, was the remarkably firm grip of Admiral Kuvira. She was still clad in her fighter pilot jumpsuit her equipment and harnesses still in preparation for the cockpit.

"That is quite enough, Lord Ren." He voice was calm but with an unmistakable note of steel underlining it.

"I merit your disappointment at the escape of the droid. However, I will not have you damaging our ships or equipment." She ordered as she forced the hand holding the lightsaber down from its previous position aloft.

Kylo Ren stood complexly still as he allowed his arm to be brought down to his hip. His masked face was now focused entirely on the Admiral standing next to him.

He made no threatening move against her, or any comment on her potentially dangerous action.

However, he made no move to extinguish his lightsaber, which even now continued to crack and spit red energy.

"If you wish to vent your frustrations, you are welcome to do so in the training rooms. Until then I would ask that you leave our equipment intact." She finished bluntly.

Kuvira also stood still. Her posture seemed to imply that she was not expecting danger. However, a trained eye could have noticed that she was ready to slip into a combat stance. And she was also ready to activate the shock gauntlet device she always maintained in her gloves. A favourite weapon among bounty hunters, as it released intense electric shocks to disable and neutralise a target in physical contact.

The bridge crew up until that point had been ignoring the conversation between Ren and Mitaka, and later when had begun his furious outburst, they had kept their eyes firmly locked on their stations.

However now, no one could help but watch the situation develop with baited breath. All wondered what they would do if the two highest ranking commanders in the First Order came to blows. Who would they be obligated to support?

Then Kylo Ren switched off his lightsaber and placed the hilt back on his belt.

The crew breathed again.

"Your advice is welcome Admiral." Kylo Ren stated. He turned to the stunned Mitaka. "Anything else?"

Mitaka takes a moment to collect himself under Kylo Ren's stare, along with Kuvira who also turns to regard him.

"The two were accompanied by a girl." He reported. He felt a sudden jerk that forced him to take a step in Kylo Ren's direction. It was as if someone had pushed him forward but then stopped.

After a second, and noticing how Ren had quickly raised an arm, before lowering it back down to his side, he realised he must have been almost subjected to a 'force'- ful interrogation before Ren thought better of it.

The Admiral's influence maybe?

"What girl?" Kylo Ren asked with an insistent tone.

Kuvira stepped in. "By all accounts a Jakku local. Our civilian representative at the outpost claimed she was a simple scavenger, living alone. No known previous contacts to the Resistance, the New Republic, or indeed any organisations what so ever."

She turned to Mitaka. "Thank you Lieutenant, you are dismissed"

The Lieutenant (clearly thankful for the dismissal) saluted and marched quickly away to receive new duties.

Kuvira turned back to Kylo Ren

"I have had a communication from the Supreme Leader. He wants us both to return to Starkiller Base and to make contact with him." She said, her tone flat as she relayed the instructions. "I have already ordered the Reclaimer and Finalizer to begin the necessary preparations and to ensure that our military garrison forces on Jakku are stabilized and sufficiently supplied. The efforts are underway; however, it will be at least 2 hours before we can make the jump to lightspeed.

Kylo Ren considers for a moment, then nods his understanding

"I will ensure that the Supreme Leader is not kept waiting. I will be in my quarters". He made to move past her, but the Admiral stepped into his path deliberately, and he paused.

Kuvira eyed the smoking ruined console and wall behind him and the maintenance repair crews that were arriving to begin their long and hard work to fixing the machinery back to working order.

She could also see them giving subtle but very real glares at Kylo Ren's back. No doubt angry at the unnecessary workload, but fearful enough to keep their resentment quiet.

She focused her attention back on Ren. "As there will be a delay in our departure I am heading to the training arena to undergo some combat training and sparing. In the interests of your emotional wellbeing and the welfare of my ship and the entire fleet. I would like you to join me for a sparing session. I am certain it will be a beneficial and salubrious experience."

For a moment Kylo Ren just stood there as he regarded her, and she him

Just when she started to think that he was not going to reply. Finally, he slowly nodded. "The exercise will be a welcome way to consume the time. Lead the way Admiral."

 **Finalizer Training Room 1**

 **Kuvira POV**

The combat training room was located deep within the bowels of the Star destroyer. It was a design requirement to ensure that nothing, but the most serious damage could touch the training facilities and thereby the untrained cadets and non-combatants.

The room was mostly white with red and black First Order banners displayed on each of the four walls. Red symbols and marks also decorated the floor of the sparing arena that was raised five steps off the floor of the room and existed as a raised square occupying most of the floor space.

Weapons were displayed on racks all along the wall. Blaster's, rifles, handguns, vibroblades, electro staffs and shields were hanging across the room. All of them loaded and ready, and all of them in perfect condition. They were mostly intended to be used on the standard training session, but that didn't mean that they could not be set to dangerous levels.

The two figures occupied the room now stood on the combat platform. Having ordered all of the previous training cadets, soldiers and instructors from the room mere moments ago. The combat was being recorded for training and instruction purposes, as most spars were often documented in the training rooms. But they could ignore that for now and delete the date once they were finished. This fight was not one for instruction, it was a simple emotional need for the combatants.

Admrial Kuvira, stood on one of the ends of the plat form. She had changed out of her flight gear and was now wearing her black combat boots, tight black exercise trousers, and a white tank top with black fingerless gloves.

He hair was tied back up in its typical tight style that ensured that it would not get in her face or be available to be easily gripped during combat.

Kylo Ren stood on the other end of the platform. He had not changed out of his typical black robes and his helmet remained firmly on his head. However, he had taken off his clock and it was now folded in the corner of the room. He probably removed the clock as in a stand up fight it was more of a hindrance. But he would not bend on the rest of his gear.

Kuvira thought she understood. She had scene him without his helmet a number of times before. But in his determination to emulate Darth Vader, he was determined to reveal his face as little as possible. Plus she understood that it also served as a terror tactic.

A mask gave a sense of mystery and fear to a person's enemies. It also allowed for the enemy to begin to see their enemy as something more than human, something that they begin to decide that they cannot defeat.

Intimidation and theatricality were powerful weapons. The strength to become more then a man in the mind of your opponent, inspired the exactly the same crippling terror that the Death Star had been built to create in their enemies.

Each of them held an electo-staff in their hands, with the static charge set on the training level. A full charge could produce enough of a shock to stop an individuals heart in the right circumstances. However, the training session would produce nothing but a nasty jolt and some minor pain. Still it was not something that you wanted to endure.

They had sparred a number of times before, in their efforts to improve their skills, pass the time, or (like in this case) as a stress release. Over time they had come up with three sets of combat rules and choices.

They could either fight with just fist and feet. No weapons or Force abilities of any kind, a true test of strength.

They could fight with a selected melee weapon of their choice. In this case the electro-staff.

Or they could fight each other with all of their arsenal. No weapons or abilities would be off limits to them.

This session, they had chosen the second option and chosen to fight with the staffs and now they stood in the ready position with the electrical staffs poised and ready to fight.

They stared at each other for a few more moments as they took in each other's stances. Then, without any indication who had moved first and who had reacted. They lunged forward.

Kylo Ren, aggressive as always swung his staff at Kuvira's head, only to find it blocked by her own staff. Quickly he swung again from the other side of her head, again and again while he forced the Admiral back as she knocked aside his blocks with short sharp counters.

Then she went on the attack

After blocking, she jabbed her staff at his feet and forced him to lift his leg out of the way and take a step back to regain his balance. While he was momentarily offset she brought her other staff end up and down on his head, forcing him to block as he stumbled backwards.

She jabbed at his feet once more, but he merely blocked the blow with a spinning blow that he continued in a 360 degree spin trying to sweep her legs out from under her.

Kuvira jumped into the air and managed to avoid the blow. However, his staff came flying toward her even before she had landed back on the ground and the force of the blow against her hurried guard caused her to stumble back a step.

Kylo did not let up his advantage and once again spun around and lashed out with a spinning kick that once again slammed into Kuvira's guard and forced her back once more. She now came quite close to the edge of the combat platform.

Kuvira lunched forward and rammed her staff against Ren's. Using the power of her motion and the strength borne of a life time of intense training she drives him back into the centre of the platform. After a few moment of pitting their physical strength against each other (although Kylo was intentionally not calling on the Force) they proceed to slam and smack their staffs against each other, trying to find a gap in the defences.

Then Ren fell back to the old tactic and brought his staff slamming down on Kuvira's defence again and again as he tried to smash his way through or knock her to the ground by sheer brute strength.

However, after taking the blows for a few seconds, Kuvira didges to the side and let the blow pass her and slam into the platform, causing a shower of sparks. With his weapon trust forward, he was unable to prevent Kuvira from sweeping his legs out from under him and sending him crashing to the ground on his back.

Kuvira immediately capitalised on her advantage and swung her staff down to bring it to Ren's chest, and end the duel in her favour. But Ren quickly rolled out of the way and climbed back to his feet, slapping away her attack as he did so.

After a few seconds to catch their breath and to revaluate their style of combat he lunched forward again.

Bring both ends of the electro staff down on her, he pressed forward but she moved back and sent one of her staff ends thrusting forward like a spear towards his face which he just managed to jolt his head to the side and avoid an electric bolt to the face.

Kylo Ren snarled beneath his helmet, his supressed rage finding a release as he fought, and the Dark Side flowed into him like a river. He did not harness its power directly to increase his speed or strength, that would violate the point of the duel. Instead he just accepted the power flowing into him and out again, but he felt it burn away his pains and doubts and fill him with resolve.

He lunged again sending vicious attacks Kuvira's way which she blocked. But then he surprised her by suddenly lashing out with a front kick directly into her exposed torso.

Kuvira was sent hurtling to the ground and the breath was knocked out of her as she felt her back slam into the unrelenting surface of the combat platform. However, with a speed and reflexes born of thousands of hours of training she flipped back to her feet from her back and swung her staff at his head with vicious force.

He blocked, and the duel began again with each opponent lunging and ducking and jabbing and weaving, trying to find an advantage.

However, as the duel began to progress longer the outcome became less in doubt.

Kuvira had been duelling for the better part of 10 minutes straight against a skilled combatant and a force user at that. The speed of the duel and the strength needed to generate the force of her attacks and the resolve of her defences was steadily taking a toll on her muscles as fatigue began to set in. Sweat glistened on her forehead and was visible on her arms. It also caused her tank top to become stained and cling tightly to her body.

(Yes, that recording footage would defiantly need to be removed soon after this).

Her breathing was still steady, but it had become deep and laboured as she fought to keep her body sustained with the oxygen needed to keep up this furious pace.

Kylo Ren meanwhile was only breathing slightly deeper then he had been when the duel had started. The agreement was to not use the force in this duel and he had followed that in not increasing his speed and strength or directly attacking the Admiral with telekinesis. But he could not stop the Force from nourishing his body and preventing exhaustion and fatigue from setting into his muscles. It was something that every trained force user could do. To the point where it became as instinctual and automatic as blinking.

Many could probably call that an unfair advantage in this duel, maybe even cheating.

But it could not be helped, and the Admiral could still win if she managed to land a telling blow on him.

The battle was re-joined with both opponents swinging at each other as their defences were tested brutally, but steadily Kuvira's fatigued muscles began to tell as her movement became a fraction slower and her reaction speed became noticeably more stressed.

Finally, she failed to jump back in time to avoid a slash to her left leg and the electrical jolt shot through her suddenly nerveless limb. Before Kylo Ren could finish her off she stabbed forward with her own staff and drove him back. Her leg shuddered and shock as he she tried to regain her balance and defend against the new attacks that came in, but her leg prevented her from retreating and avoiding a new blow to her abdomen and the shock of the contact left herself defences as Kylo Ren knocked the staff from her hand and brought his blow in towards her head.

Kuvira braced for the pain of the physical contact and the electric charge. But only an inch away from her cheek, the staff was halted and Kylo Ren held it there. The sparks of the crackling energy were close enough to cause her skin to prickle and her nose to be filled with the smell of burning ozone.

For a moment, neither of them moved as Kylo Ren maintained his staff's position and Kuvira remained defiantly still.

Finally, Kylo lowered his spear and shut down the power pack. In turn Kuvira stepped back and entered a relaxed militant stance. Impressive despite the pain that must have been coursing through her nervous system. Instead she regained her standard military bearing and gave a subtle nod of acknowledgement, a small admission of defeat.

Kylo Ren knew that Kuvira refused to show any form of weakness. Her eyes never lost their steely strength or focused gaze, and her posture never betrayed anything other then strength. But she was not so arrogant or vain that she could not acknowledge when she had been bested in combat.

In turn he decided to offer a gesture of his own.

"You fought well Admiral, as always." He said simply and plainly, his voice as always distorted by his mask.

Kuvira nodded and began to move off the platform to wear her discarded jacket and flight clothes lay neatly folded on one of the observation benches. After a second Kylo Ren followed her calling both staffs into his hand with the force and then floating them back onto their previous wall hangers.

Kuvira slid her flight jump suit back on and zipped it closed. She would need to remove it and have a proper shower before she could resume her duties. She would not arrive on the bridge in front of her soldiers in such as state. She was not so vain as to need to check her hair and clothes every second during battle. Just thinking about that made her remember the tales of the ancient Jedi General Valenthyne Farfalla, and she supressed a grimace at the thought of his vanity and lack of priorities, dispute his military skill.

She needed to set the necessary examples for her troops and her ship crew. And the discipline of their army and navy was the force that held the First Order together.

As they walked out of the training room they fell into step as they walked along the corridors and past the various sections of the Finalizer as they made their way to the upper decks, where the officers quarters were.

They passed by numerous stormtroopers and petty officers on their route and they received a wide berth as all alike shuffled to the side to allow their two highest ranking superiors past. Kuvira was not pleased to be seen looking so unkempt, but she endeavoured to make up for it with her standard imposing stride and imperceptible posture.

They ended up taking the same turbo lift up to the officer's deck and once out into the open and much more deserted corridor, Kuvira's commlink went off. Pausing she pulled out the com link and flicked it on.

She noticed that Ren had also stopped and was waiting to see the results of the conversation. At least that was why she assumed he was hanging about.

The blue tinged image of her personal aide, Lieutenant Nephtina appeared on the com link. Her personal assistant was a blue skinned Twi'lek woman of 26 years of age. She had been brought into the First Order as a young orphaned child. It was a common enough story in the outer rim.

Kuvira had selected her as her assistant and aide due her exemplary organisation and efficiency and on a personal note, her cheerful and strong-willed nature. She found it to be a nice counter-balance to her own stern and unyielding nature.

At the same time, she had selected her to make a point that the First Order did not follow the same ridiculous notions of human superiority that had crippled the Empire. She found such a concept insanely short-sighted and simply primitive. The idea that a civilisation as advanced technologically and socially as the Empire, fell into such a corrupting and damaging idea was a constant source irritation to her.

She wanted to have Nephtina a clear sign that alien races were welcome in the First Order and that she would ensure they rose according to their merits. Not on whether they had pink skin or hair instead of horns or two eyes, three eyes or five eyes.

Nephtina saluted as was proper and then waited for permission to speak, as was also proper.

"Report Lieutenant." Kuvira said in her typical commander's voice. Gentle but firm and resolute. Nephtina nodded and began her report.

"Admiral the Finalizer and the Reclaimer are ready to make the journey to Starkiller base. Will you be making the transfer to the Reclaimer for the trip or will you be travelling on the Finalizer?" She asked in a strong but deferential tone. If there were any qualities that Admiral Kuvira did not tolerate it was cowardice and sycophantism.

"What is the status of our operation on Jakku and the rest of the system?" She demanded.

"Operations on Jakku are moving well. No trouble from the locals yet. The resources for the outpost construction have been moved down to the surface and a troop rotation has been created to allow the effective reshuffling of troops on the planet.

As for the system we have placed comm buoys at the necessary hyperspace lane access points and we have assigned a flight patrol of fighters and light cruisers. We have already established contact with our forces and bases across the galaxy. The fighter hangers have been temporarily set up on the surface until more permeant ones can be properly constructed. All in all, the system is secure Admiral." She finished with a hint of smug self-satisfaction in her tone.

Kuvira's lip twitched upwards as she noticed the moment of prideful emotion cross Nephtina's face, but she allowed it to pass.

"Excellent, I will be heading back to the Reclaimer for the trip to Starkiller base, alert my crew to prepare for my arrival." She commanded

Nephtina saluted again "Yes Admiral." She nodded. The image flickered and died.

She turned back to Kylo Ren who had still not moved from his position in front of her.

"Thank you for the spar Lord Ren. I hope you found it as useful as I did. I will be returning to the Reclaimer for the journey to Starkiller. I trust you will be present for our report to the Supreme Leader?" She inquired

Kylo Ren nodded after a brief moment. "It was an enjoyable experience, as always Admiral. I will join you in the Supreme Leader's chamber on the planet."

She nodded, and Ren turned and walked down the hall to his own chambers. Kuvira made her way to the temporary accommodations she had been provided on the ship, determined to perform her ablutions before for returned to the Reclaimer.

And to the fight.


	6. Chapter 6 - Calm Before the Storm

**Author's Notes**

 **Edboy4962: Thank you for all the reviews, they are greatly appreciated.**

 **Guest: Thank you for the correction about Coruscant. I was under the impression it was Republic aligned due to the riots etc after Endor. I will try to amend the chapter or make some correction about the planets alignment some time later in the story.**

 **Miss Luny: Thank you for your praise. I should mention that while my Kuvira is definitely derived from the Legend of Korra. This is not a crossover and will be entirely in the Star Wars universe. However, I will take your suggestion in to account for later chapters.**

 **Palantiri: Thank you very much for the praise and thank you for the advice. I found it very helpful. I will try to ensure that the characters develop emotionally, in a reasonable timeframe. Keeping in mind that the 7** **th** **and 8** **th** **movies timeline consist of roughly a few weeks in total at best guess. Also, if you could elaborate on what you mean by 'wishfullfillment-esque stories' as I am not entirely certain what you mean.**

 **ThatAnnoying: Thank you for pointing that spelling error out, I hadn't noticed. I tend to get on a roll when writing and use auto-correct to fix any spelling mistakes.**

 **Too all other readers, reviews are always appreciated, and I welcome your feedback. The more Reviews the more inspired I am to continue with new chapters.**

 **Chapter 6 – The Calm Before the Storm**

 **D'Qar, the Resistance Base**

 **Leia POV**

On D'Qar stood General Leia Organa, formerly Princess of Alderaan, formerly council member of the Rebel Alliance, formerly Senator of the New Republic…and most painfully of all, formerly Leia Organa-Solo.

Despite her multitude of titles, she wore simple military garb with no visible signs of rank. Some said this was because she had so many titles it was virtually impossible to display them all accurately. The more cynical claimed it was because most of her titles were effectively meaningless, i.e princess of a dead world, disgraced senator of the Republic.

But most believed it was because she wanted it to be remembered that she was no more or less important than any Resistance member. Regardless no one on the planet would fail to see this small but massively imposing woman for what she was.

A leader.

She stood in the command centre of the Resistance base of D'Qar. Effectively the beating heart of the private military force that she had founded and built in recent years.

She's had many titles and help many positions over the course of her life. Both political and military, and all of them had been the main focus in her life at the time. And each one of them had left its mark on her, both in body and soul.

In fact, she sometimes joked (in the rare moments when she was allowed and/or able to feel such levity) that she could tell which wrinkles, age lines and stress marks had come from which of her many hectic jobs.

It was a humour that was cloaked in sadness and weariness. She knew that she looked tired. She certainly felt it too. Every time she looked at herself in the mirror each morning, she was momentarily struck with how old and haggard she had become.

She was no longer the fair and young princess that had the strength of will to strangle Hutt crime lords, charge into battle against enemy troopers or dodge multiple assassinations attempts. Now she was an old veteran. She had grey hair, and her hands were worn and creased with the ravages of age and long forgotten injuries ached across her body.

She had been fighting her whole life. Ever since she was a child, eavesdropping on her father's secret communications with rebel leaders in the palace of Alderaan, she had been a part of the fight.

She had dedicated her entire existence to the battle against tyranny. To bring down the evil that was the Galactic Empire and its complete totalitarian rule over thousands of worlds. To free all those who had been enslaved by it and bring justice to those who had lost loved ones to it. To ensure that peace and democracy could be restored to the galaxy in a New Republic built on cooperation and understanding.

Maybe most of all. To make sure that no other worlds would suffer the same fate as Alderaan. And that no one else would ever have to watch their entire world die before their eyes

…. like she had.

And she had accomplished all of those things.

The Empire was gone. The New Republic now governed the galaxy with the elected senate residing on Hosnian Prime. The Emperor and all his minions were dead or at least removed from power.

And yet somehow she had not appeared to have made any process in the last 4 decades. She was still doing what she had been doing as a teenager. Running an underground, paramilitary group made up of likeminded idealists, who had come together to desperately save the galaxy. To fight an evil that even now seemed to be becoming an unstoppable tide against which resistance was pointless.

She could not help but wonder. Where it all went so wrong?

After the final battle of Jakku and the official surrender of the Empire to the New Republic. They had all thought it would be so easy. That now that the war and fighting was done, the establishment of the New Republic would be merely a formality. That after the tyranny of the Empire, the people of all worlds would be eager and ready to embrace the democratic ideal. That they would understand the need for patience and compromise.

But like many things in life. It was the intangible aspects that proved so much more difficult to restore and re-establish. Such as the idea that everyone was entitled to a voice. That any opinion no matter how unpopular was valued.

But she and those who had led the rebellion seemed to have grossly under estimated the deeply buried desire of far too many people, who simply preferred to be told what to do.

It was after all, so much easier to simply follow orders then to think for one self. It was much more peaceful and pleasant to let someone else make the difficult choices, so you didn't have too. And it was to be an unpleasant realisation that many people did not care a bit about the opinions of others if they conflicted with their own.

This was a great problem that the Empire had left them. An undeniable cancer that had seeped into the psyche of the people and left them missing the tyrannical system had that guided them through their simple servile lives.

But ironically it was the sudden indulgence of free speech that had done an equal amount of damage to the New Republic. And so, the Senate had debated and argued and second guessed, until it was too late.

But among all the mistakes that had been made during the formation of the New Republic. She knew which one was the most damaging to their new government.

The dismantling of the New Republic Fleet.

Mon Mothma, the leader of the Rebellion, first Supreme Chancellor after Palpatine's death, and Leia's mentor had pushed for this to happen before even the Galactic Concordance was signed. Leia had bitterly disagreed but had eventually grudgingly bowed to Mon Mothma's decision.

After all, a massive militarized fleet and army had been one of the hallmarks of Imperial rule. And Mon Mothma had been determined to show the galaxy and the Rebel Alliance. That they were not just going to replace the domination of the Empire with their own rule through force.

Leia would have been happy to accept a downsizing of the Republic fleet. But not so quickly and not before the New Republic could firmly establish itself against all the others that were jostling for power amid the fall of the Empire, such as crime families and a revived separatist movement.

But she had been overruled and now the New Republic was viewed across the galaxy as an entity that barely existed beyond the senate building on Hosnian Prime.

Having spent many years in the New Republic senate, (before the reveal of her parentage forced her out) she would have been hard pressed to argue with that assumption.

The Outer Rim, (which had provided the rebels with so much aid) was once again left to its own devices by the reduced fleet and the uninterested senate. The idea of circulating the capital planet was intended to spread the Republic government across the galaxy. Instead the capital invariably moved between Core Worlds only. And the deadlock of the populists and centralists ensured that the senate remained ineffective

In the end the New Republic was stagnant, ineffective, and had virtually no presence with its reduced military power. She was disappointed. But she felt that compared to the evil of the Empire, she could look back and feel satisfied with what the Rebels had accomplished. That she could settle down into retirement with her husband, son and brother and feel that she had made the galaxy better.

But then the incident with the Amaxine warriors and her alliance with Senator Ransolm Casterfo had led her to learn of a great galaxy spanning conspiracy against the New Republic. That had lead her down a twisting and turning chain of events until she arrived at the source.

And what she found was beyond her worst fears.

The First Order.

Born of the ashes of the Empire and comprised originally of Imperial loyalists who had refused to surrender. They had taken their fleets and armies into the unknown regions to rest and rebuild. Just waiting to launch their attack on the New Republic and bring the galaxy back under their total control. It was then that she realised that the war was not over. It had never truly been over. It had simply been a very long lull in the conflict.

But the New Republic senate had been too lazy, too indolent, too corrupt to act on her warning. And she had realised that the sun was setting on the New Republic.

And so, she had given rise to the Resistance. Because even if the New Republic would not fight for itself then she would, and so would others. Even those who had served in the Alliance with her had left their dreams of a well-deserved retirement and joined her to fight the good fight once more.

Ackbar, Holdo, Nien Numb and others.

She had not wanted to drag them back into another fight. They had given so much to the galaxy already. But she should not have been surprised. They, like her, were willing to lay down everything for the sake of others.

But this new fight had been anything but easy. The Resistance had nowhere near the backing the Alliance had, and they were struggling to meet their First Order's activities. Their plan had always been to bring the New Republic to their side. To show the Senate that they must destroy their First Order for their own survival.

But so far that plan had not succeeded.

Their only other hope was the return of her brother Luke Skywalker. The Last Jedi.

Which was why she was anxiously waiting for a response from their star pilot Poe Dameron on the status of his mission to Jakku. He was already long past his scheduled check in and she could not keep herself from pacing slightly as he tried to occupy her thoughts with other matters.

So, when Lieutenant Brance came hurrying into the command centre, she turned away from her conversation with Temmin 'Snap' Wexley and a droid to face him. She quickly examined the data pad that he thrust into her waiting hands and as she read, she felt her shoulders involuntarily slump in sorrow.

"General, as you can see from this read out. The community on Jakku has been over run. First Order stormtroopers. Lor San Tekka was killed". He said, his voice cracking a little. Tekka had been widely respected in the Resistance, for both his comforting nature and his valued sage advice to all who needed it.

Leia was studying the read out, and as she continues to read her spirits continued to sink lower and lower.

She had of course known that the New Republic had sold the Jakku system to the First Order at a ridiculous price. But she had hoped that they would not be sending a garrison force there before they could get Tekka and leave.

But now she was reading that not only was Tekka dead. But his surviving followers (upon learning of the New Republic's actions) had pledged themselves to the First Order. She hoped that it was a meaningless gesture made in the face of certain dead if refused. But from what the report indicated, it seemed they were actively assisting the First Order set up shop on Jakku. No hints of rebellion or organised Resistance was reported, and it appeared that formerly welcoming contacts had gone silent in the recent days.

As she continued to read she felt her lips involuntarily curl back in a grimace of frustration as she came to the part detailing the First Order's presence on Jakku.

 _The Reclaimer._

And that could only mean that Admiral Kuvira had been in command of the operation. She forced herself to calm down and remain composed. But it was incredibly difficult.

Admiral Kuvira had appeared on the galactic stage a few years ago along with the First Order's revelation to the larger galaxy.

When she had presented herself (via hologram on Hosnian Prime) as the Commander in Chief of the entire First Order the Senate had laughed behind closed doors.

This young woman of less then 25 years was the highest-ranking commander of the First Order?! To many in the senate, this only cemented the idea that the First Order was a grossly exaggerated and under equipped organisation of zealots and 'children playing dress up'.

But Leia had seen the truth. Both in the engagements that occurred after the revelation, and in those cold calculating eyes in that hologram, that burned with an intensity she had not seen since Grand Moff Tarkin. She had instantly known that this was an enemy that was no fool and should never be taken lightly.

Time had later proven her right.

Kuvira had proven to be nothing less then a tactical genius and an inspiring, charismatic leader for the enemy. And under her the First Order had rabidly expanded at a rate that many had previous considered impossible. After that Resistance operations against the First Order became much more difficult and much more costly.

Fighter squadrons going missing on recognisance missions.

Their limited spies in First Order territory going silent one by one.

Attempts to gain allies in the Outer Rim against the First Order being met with sabotage and seemingly random setbacks.

The common cause was soon made clear when a First Order strike force, led by Admiral Kuvira personally in her TIE Interceptor, had attacked a secret Resistance base on Trilo in the far Outer Rim. The fighters had seemingly appeared out of nowhere and proceeded to ravage the surface and infrastructure of the base, before breaking off before the Resistance pilots could even get into their starfighters.

Naturally the Resistance pilots had been unwilling to let the deaths of their comrades go unanswered and had set off in pursuit. The ensuring dogfight had left the entire Resistance attack forces destroyed with minimal losses on the enemy side, due to the sudden appearance of the _Reclaimer_ in the system which blasted their fighters to dust.

It was only later that they learned the reason for the First Order's hit and run strategy. They had goaded the Resistance into chasing them across the territory border and then ensured that the fight had been documented and passed along through 'neutral' parties to the Republic Centralist party.

With no firm evidence to show the First Order had initiated the attack. The Resistance had only their word on what had happened.

It was quickly made clear that it was note enough.

The outcry that had followed had greatly diminished the Resistance in the eyes of the government and people. Those who saw some value in what they had been saying, instead now saw them as dangerous extremists who where determined to cause a galactic war.

The ploy had been repeated years later at Tilius V (a First Order training camp for their child cadets). They had attacked the facility and attempted to rescue the children.

The attack had failed, and their forces were destroyed by reinforcements that arrived far too quickly for them not to have been aware of the attack ahead of time. Reinforcements that once again came from the _Reclaimer_.

The enemy had also deployed clearly off-limits ships and weaponry that were outlawed by the terms of the Galactic Concordance.

Despite the loses she had been happy. They finally had definitive proof that their First Order had violated the terms of the Concordance and she was sure that would finally be enough to convince the senate to act against the First Order.

Instead, when she had presented her evidence against the First Order to her former colleagues she had been shouted off the podium. They had declared that the reason the First Order had violated the law was in simple response to the Resistances attacks. They had called her a warmonger, a threat to the entire Republic.

Too late did she realise why the First Order had not made any effort to prevent her from speaking before the senate or to destroy the evidence.

They had wanted her to present the evidence and had used their influence in the senate to ensure that they focused on the Resistance attack. By the end of it they had gained more galactic sympathy and had gained de facto approval to violate the Galactic Concordance. After that no one batted an eyelid when the First Order displayed its clearly illegal technology in their suddenly increased expansion through the Outer Rim.

After that incident and with virtually all supplies and aid cut off from the New Republic to the Resistance, she had been forced to halt almost all operations against the First Order. This was due to the lack of resources and her determination not to allow such a thing to happen again.

Thus, the First Order had 'permission' for their weaponry, an increase in public sympathy, and an almost free hand in the Outer Rim.

She had been played for a fool.

And Kuvira had been at the heart of all of it.

And now she seemed to be at the heart of the First Order's efforts to find and destroy Luke. Leia could not help but feel her dread steadily increase at the thought of that.

After skimming the rest of the recognisance report's additional details; weaponry, numbers of enemies, time of the attack, she was forced to voice the only conclusion.

"If they get to Luke first, we won't stand a chance." She murmured. She then raised her head to face Brance directly again. "What about Poe Dameron?"

Brance hesitated for a second before answering. And that was all the hints she needed to know if this would be good or bad news.

"They found his X-wing destroyed. Based on angle and depth of the damage, it was likely destroyed while still on the ground. Definitely First Order, although it bares the marks of local attacks as well. But they seemed to have been made after the attack. Possibly by the converted villagers." Brance slowly trailed off. Not wanting to remind Leia that their former allies were now their committed enemies.

"There is no indication that Commander Dameron survived the attack. It looks like we have lost him" He forced out solemnly.

Leia's expression visibly tightened. Not just because of the fact that if they continued to lose pilots like this, then they would have virtually nothing to meet the First Order with.

Poe was important to her on a personal level. He had served with her for years and his parents had served with her in the Alliance. She had often viewed him, like he was a reckless nephew that was over eager to help. In private, she imagined that if things had been different, Ben would have been similar to him. Maybe they might even have been friends.

But she also viewed him as someone with the potential to take her place in this fight.

Leia knew that she could not go on for much longer. She had been fighting this struggle her entire life. She was worn down, exhausted and burnt out. Often she felt that the fiery spirit that had always been her reserve of strength had become the faintest flickering spark.

Disappointment, defeat and disillusionment had worn away her idealism and defiance to the point when keeping up the brave front for her troops was so much harder than it should have been.

In Poe, she had seen someone whose fire still blazed hot and brightly. And while he still needed to be tempered by training and experience. She was confident he was someone she could count on to continue this fight after she was gone.

If he was gone…. she was not sure if she could handle that.

After relaying orders to Brance and instructing C-3PO to activate BB-8's tracking beacon. She turned and left the command centre and headed to meet Korr Sella. Her personal assistant in her Senate days. And more recently, the Resistance's official envoy to the New Republic.

Ironically her dark green uniform, commander badge and tightly tied up hair might have given an uneducated observer the idea that she was the commanding officer and Leia was just a civilian.

Leia did not waste time even saying hello. "You need to go to the Senate immediately. Tell them I insist that they take action against the First Order. The longer they bicker and delay, the stronger the Order becomes. If they delay much longer, the Order will have grown so strong, that they will be unable to do anything. It won't matter what they think!"

Sella nodded in understanding. Even though she felt that this plan was on the borders of desperation.

The Senate had not listened before. And with the legal purchase of Jakku from the New Republic, the First Order had not violated any intergalactic laws.

She decided to voice her concerns. "With all respect. Do you think the senators will listen?"

Leia shook her head in resignation. "I don't know" She muttered in frustration. "So much time has passed. There was a time when they were once willing to listen. But I don't care what they think about me, as long as they take action."

Sella nodded again "I will do all I can to ensure the Resistance gets the hearing we deserve."

Leia placed her hand on Sella's shoulder. And offered her one of her smiles. Like all her smiles these days, it felt very forced.

"I have full confidence in you Sella. I know you will deliver our message with all of your considerable ability."

With that Kor Sella left for the hanger bay for a ship to Hosnian Prime. And Leia returned to her seemingly never-ending struggle.

 **Meanwhile: On Board the Millennium Falcon**

 **Han POV**

"You, close the door behind us!" Han yelled frantically at the young female stowaway that he had found on his ship! Turning to the male stowaways he yelled. "You take care of Chewie!"

Han and Rey race up the boarding ramp as Finn heads up with Chewie, who screams wildly in pain from the blaster wound he received from the kriffing Guavian Death Gang. Or maybe it was from the Kanjiklub scum suckers.

It was hard to tell as both of them were filling the air around the Millennium Falcon with super-heated plasma blasts. Even more so as the portal opens and even more of them flood into the room.

Han reaches the cockpit and with long practiced ease, throws himself into the pilot seat. He quickly stabs at the navicomputer, hitting switches and entering coordinates as fast as he can.

Then Rey enters just behind him and moves past him to Chewie's seat.

Han stared at her as she quickly begins messing with his ships controls. "Hey, where are you going?" He demanded.

"Unkar Plutt installed a fuel pump too. If we don't prime that we're not going anywhere." She answered without even turning back to look at him.

"I hate that guy" Han hissed under his breath. It felt like his ship, his baby had been violated. If he ever met that that guy in the flesh he would ensure that he put a blaster bolt between his eyes. After letting Chewie have some fun with him first of course.

"And you could use a co-pilot." Rey continues as Han looks at her.

His facial expression seems caught between horror at the suggestion of anyone other then Chewie as his co-pilot. And impressed at her audacity.

"I got one, he's back there." He replies. Just in time to hear a very unhappy Wookie roar from the ship's med bay. He only hoped that Chewie would not lose his temper and unleash it on the kid within in arms reach. Blood was hell to scrub out of the deck plate.

Turning back to the controls he shrugs in acceptance. "Watch the thrust, we're going out of here at lightspeed".

Rey turns her shocked expression towards him. "From inside the hangar? Is that even possible?" She demanded. Han brushes off the concern and offers the same response that has served him well in his life.

"I never ask that question until after I've done it."

Suddenly the viewport went from showing the hanger back to showing rows and rows of serrated teeth. A Rathtar had jumped onto the windshield. Its giant mouth chewing at the glass as it tried to get at the food inside the cockpit with its sheer animal ferocity.

"This is not how I thought this day was gonna go. Angle the shields, hang on back there!" He yelled over his shoulder at the other two passengers in the lounge.

"No problem!" Came a sarcastic response.

Han ignored it and turned the ship to face the launch bay. "Come on baby, don't let me down!"

He punched the lightspeed controls, only to be rewarded with…. nothing. "What?!" He demanded.

He could not believe this was happening. He finally got his ship back and now all he had to look forward to was being blasted by gang member scum or eaten alive by a bloated ball of rubbery flesh and teeth!

But then Rey reaches over and hits a switch matter-of-factly.

"Compressor". She stated simply.

Han doesn't like it but she's right. When he hits the switch again the hyperdrive fired and the hangar is filled with lightspeed blast as the attacking gang members are blasted back like dry leaves. In the cockpit the Rathtar rips away like wet tissue paper as the forces of the galaxy tear the apex predator apart. #

The stars stretch like elastic and the black of the ether turns to the swirling blue tunnel of hyper space. As the Millennium Falcon vanishes into the distance.

Meanwhile A figure left on board the freighter opens his communication commlink. Bala-Tik was seething at the lost chance to finally put that lying, thieving, washed up husk of a smuggler Han Solo in the grave where he belonged. Still, if he could not handle that personally, he could make sure that he could pocket an impressive finder's fee.

"Inform the First Order that Han Solo has the droid they want. And it's aboard the Millennium Falcon." He relayed to his First Order contact.

After a few seconds a voice comes back over the communication link. The voice was coded with an untraceable link and the voice that came back over the channel was disguised to avoid anyone placing their voice, gender or even species.

"You have done well Bala-Tik. The appropriate sum has been transferred to your requested accounts. The First Order thanks you for your service."

 **In the Far Outer-Rim**

Meanwhile a pair of tie fighters roar towards a magnificent planet. The surface was frozen white with lush snow-covered forests and snow caped mountains rising in a hauntingly beautiful image. But that is the only thing that is normal about this planet.

The surface has been carved down to the core. And the artificial modifications that have been placed on this celestial body are obvious even from the void of space.

This is the Starkiller Base, a natural planet that has been hacked and modified into something sinister. Something truly unique in the galaxy. In fact, maybe unique in possibly all of the universal history.

 **Authors Notes**

 **I took this chapter to provide more background on the Resistance vs First Order conflict which the movies could not go into details with. I decided to cut down the Han, Chewie, Gangs and Rathtars because it was just so much to write and in this current OC story I don't see anyway it would be very different from the actual film.**

 **I would also like your opinion on these kinds of chapters. This chapter was mostly an introduction into Leia's personal feelings, memories and current situation. I had planned to do this when introducing a new main character, i.e Luke, Snoke.**

 **I see this as a way to introduce them. Give an enhanced viewing of how they got to this point in time that the movies couldn't portray. And of course, to develop them and the story emotionally and personally.**

 **Please let me know if you enjoy these personal filler chapters for the characters or if you would prefer that I focus more on the actual events.**

 **As always let me know in your reviews and I will try to take them into account.**


	7. Chapter 7 - Tactics and Power Plays

**Edboy4926: As always cheers for the reviews and the encouragement. As for your question about Connix. I know that Kaydel Ko Connix was played by Billie Lourd who was the daughter of Carrie Fisher. As for the suggestion that she is Leia's unknown daughter in Star Wars. I suppose it is possible, but I highly doubt it. For one thing un like Luke and Leia, at the time Kylo Ren was born, there would have been no need to perform a secret Jedi kidnapping protection program. Also, Connix is roughly the same age as Kylo Ren. It would be almost impossible for Kylo Ren not to know he had a sister.**

 **Guest: Thank you for confirming you enjoy the filler chapters. I was unsure if I should make the story more in-depth or simply focus on the main events of the movie.**

 **Setress: Thanks for the compliments. I am taking the issue of Kylo Ren's and Kuvira's relationship very seriously. I am not sure yet if they will end up together, but it is defiantly a possibility. I find that even when not planed the situation sets the tone for the relationship anyways, so we will see how it goes. Also, I need to keep in mind that the time period between the 7** **th** **and 8** **th** **movies is roughly a few weeks or months at most. Not a lot of emotional change can realistically happen in such a short space of time.**

 **Voltner: Thanks for the review. In regard to your question, I am thinking of introducing the Star Wars Rebels crew into the story, but it is complicated. First of all, Ezra and Kannan are not an option as we have they are either dead or missing respectively. We don't have any confirmed information on what the Ghost crew are doing at this point in time, or if they are even still alive.**

 **As for the others, Sabine, Hera would likely join the Resistance if given the chance and seeing all they fought for being destroyed. Zeb might as well but could also focus on rebuilding his race. It is possible we might see one or more of them appear in the story. We will see as it progresses.**

 **Chapter 7 – Tactics and Power Plays**

 **Starkiller Base**

 **Kuvira POV**

The _Reclaimer_ exited hyperspace mere seconds before the _Finalizer_ also entered the system. The blue streaks of light forming back into small pinpricks of light as the stars snapped back into focus.

Kuvira stood on the bridge in full uniform. Her stance and posture were the pinnacle of strength and stoicism as she dominated the bridge in black uniform perfect. While she always tried to portray unyielding strength at all times, this time it was unconsciously enhanced from a sense of euphoria at what she was observing out the bridge viewport.

A fleet of star destroyers orbited the white planet that contrasted beautifully in the black void of space. The sight was enough to bring a lump to Kuvira's throat, though she would never admit such a lapse of control to anyone.

The fleet numbered roughly three dozen Resurgent class star destroyers and an additional ten of the earlier imperial class models. The Resurgent class were placed in defence formation around the planet. It was highly unlikely that an attack would occur on this world, given the fact that most in the galaxy did not even know it existed. It was even more unlikely that any such attack would be large enough or powerful enough to warrant such a large defence fleet. But the First Order was not one to take chances, and the planet was as heavily defenced as it was possible to be at nearly all times.

Meanwhile the Imperial class star destroyers were placed in supporting positions around the Resurgent Star destroyers, or they were moving in conjunction with their duties with the forces and logistics of the planetary base.

While the old Imperial class was much smaller and less powerful then the Resurgent class, there were still a large number of them in the First Order Navy. They may have been old, but they were still very powerful warships, able to go toe to toe with even a newly developed New Republic warship. They could perform orbital bombardments and they could hold a large amount of personnel and military equipment.

Some had slowly started to be dismantled and their material and equipment used in the construction of new ships. But for the moment the First Order still had a large number of them and with frequent retrofitting, they worked as good as new.

While the fleet was no where near the full strength of the First Order Navy, it was incredibly rare for so much of their strength to be concentrated in one place.

But this planet was vital importance. Not just because of the unfathomable resources that had been used in its construction. But because it was once of the few places that the First Order High Command ever gathered together.

But Kuvira was for once not interested in the semantics. For now, she just enjoyed the sight before her, and allowed herself to take a moment to reflect on what the sight represented.

The Imperial remnant had fled into the Unknown Regions with no plan, no firm chain of command, and very limited resources. Despite the mappings and star charts provided via Grand Admiral Thrawn, they had not even known for certain if any location would be a safe haven. The plan for the Imperial contingency, must have seemed like suicide in the dark void of the galaxy to those early loyalists.

And yet they had boldly launched themselves into the Unknown Regions. They had crossed distances across never before seen stars. Facing the unknown each and every day and all the dangers that were lurking around every corner.

And yet by a miracle of Imperial resilience and determination, they stayed together, kept going, with the same courage that had served them and the Empire before. Until finally, with the aid and knowledge of the Supreme Leader. They had laid the foundation of the First Order and began the long journey to change it from a pathetic fleet of refugees, into the mightily galactic power that it now was.

Kuvira had spent her entire life, (or at least as much as she could remember) working and fighting to make sure that their dream of a united galaxy survived and did not die an ignoble death in the Unknown Regions, unknown and un mourned by the larger galaxy.

But as she looked out at the massive fleet and the planet sized super weapon in front of her. She allowed her lips to twitch upwards. Unfortunately, she could not prevent her eyes from growing glassy as the swell of emotions threatened to overwhelm her composure.

She was lost in her thoughts and failed to hear the foot steps behind her.

"Admiral?" Commander Pacorus, (the _Reclaimer_ 's 2nd in Command) said as he stood at attention behind his superior officer, his uniform perfect and his blonde hair neatly combed as if awaiting a surprise inspection.

Kuvira paused to seemingly readjust the collar of her black greatcoat before she turned around, and in the process, discreetly wiped away the evidence of her emotion lapse from her face. Her eyes blinking rabidly to try to regain their commanding state.

She turned and faced her subordinate. "Prepare my shuttle and inform the planetary commander that I and Kylo Ren will be arriving shortly to meet with the Supreme Leader."

Pacorus nodded and gestured to two of the bridge aides who began typing information into the data pads and consoles.

Kuvira turned and made her way down the bridge walk way and began the journey to the hanger bay.

 **Starkiller Base: Central Control Facility**.

Kuvira walked done the dimply lit corridor of Starkiller Base, heading for the Assembly chamber that housed the massive holoprojector turned to the Supreme Leader's personal frequency.

Nephitina walked a few paces behind her. She was dressed in her typical black First Order lieutenant uniform. Her cap had been specially altered to allow her Lekku to hang down her back with comfort. Her blue skin standing in great contrast to her black uniform. Her data pad was in her hands as she typed away, ensuring that all her duties were completed and that all the requirements for the Admiral's busy schedule were met.

Nephitina was very through and almost always had her duties completed before any new appointment began. But the last few days since Jakku had been particularly busy, and Nephitina had been forced to work and walk more and more often. This forced her to cut down on her usual quips and banter that she enjoyed with her Admiral, often at her expense.

Kuvira was privately enjoying the sight. And the momentary peace and quiet.

Still at the same time she could have used the distraction of Nephitina's jokes as she walked on this world.

Even as she trusted the engineers of the First Order with her life, each time she flew in her TIE fighter or the Reclaimer, she could not help but feel slightly nervous whenever she stepped foot on this planet.

If you could even call it a planet anymore.

The planet had been carved down to the core. Its valleys altered, and its surface enhanced with technology. Until it no longer resembled a planet.

At least not a natural one.

But the source of her unease was then knowledge that swirling miles below her was the churning massive of the harnessed power of an entire star. And the knowledge that the power of all that was being contained solely by the equipment that the First Order Science Ministry had drilled into the crust of this planet.

But the power that was contained in this planet's fragile shell was on scale that had never before been harnessed in the galaxy's history. At least not in the known histories. Ancient legends were full of stories that spoke of weapons like Starkiller. Weapons that could wipe a planet clean of life in seconds, or others that had the power to make a Sun go nova.

But this was the first weapon that had ever been attempted on such a scale. And she was not willing to become a victim of simple scientific miscalculation.

Personally, she though that this planet sized weapon might be a great advantage that could make the upcoming war much easier. But she also acknowledged that the weapon could also be another Death Star in more ways than one. Thankfully the Supreme Leader was only here in projection, and that there were enough backup systems to give the planetary forces time to evacuate before the weapon exploded.

At least in theory.

She shook away those thoughts. Fretting over a situation that had not and might not ever happen was a waste of time and beneath the mental control an Admiral of the First Order should possess.

As she turned the corner and came in sight of Kylo Ren standing by the door way t the assembly chamber. Was he waiting for her?

However, as the corridor came into full view she saw that Ren was talking to someone and when she who Kylo Ren was talking to, her lip instinctively curled back in a grimace.

General Armitage Hux.

What was he doing here? He had been placed on the frontiers of their territory on the far side of the Unknown Regions. She knew because she had ensured that he was placed there after a conference with the Supreme Leader.

Hux was at best an incompetent military commander. The victories that he had under his belt had been a result of either having an overwhelming advantage in numbers and resources. Or they had been due to his much more deserving sub commanders.

She knew that he could not be allowed to command their forces on their border with the Republic. The situation there required careful calculation and subtlety, not blind aggression and posturing.

She had once had a private meeting with the Supreme Leader and in the process she had flat out asked to know why the Supreme Leader why he allowed Hux to not only remain within the First Order but grant him the rank of General. Snoke had always had sound judgement and his plans and leadership had been wise and profitable.

So, she could not understand why he allowed a rabid Kath hound to retain such a high rank. It was an accident waiting to happen. And it would surely cost the First Order, possibly even lead to a crippling blow.

Snoke however had simply smiled as she finished her small rant. He had then leaned forward and said.

" _Sometimes a blunt instrument is needed to ensure success. Hux's is a fool as you say, Admiral. But his anger and psychosis can be harnessed and directed to suit the needs of the First Order. You have likened him to a Kath Hound in the past. And what do you do with a Kath Hound?"_

He paused, and she offered no answer

" _You point it at your enemies and unleash it. As long as the Beast savages your enemies, and you keep him properly feed and satisfied. It will remain an effective weapon, without ever having to worry about it developing the intellect to successfully bite the hand that feeds it. All we have to do, is make sure it never forgets who holds the leash."_

Kuvira had been impressed once again with the Supreme Leader's foresight. However, she worried that he was underestimating Hux's ego, ambition and stupidity.

Still the Supreme Leader's word was law and she could do nothing to get rid of Hux.

Instead she had posted him to the far ends of their territory. While the conflict with the New Republic required careful handling, she saw the wisdom in Snoke's words. Sometimes there were situations that required a blunt instrument.

The Grisk, for example, were an aggressive and warlike species that inhabited the unknown regions. They had had conflicts with the First Order for many years. And according to classified records, they had even engaged with the Empire. Specifically, the Chimera commanded by Darth Vader and Grand Admiral Thrawn.

They required no special handling. They were a species that only respected warlike behaviour and would not be deterred by anything other than vicious brute force. This was one of Hux's very limited skills. So, she had placed him on the border of Grisk territory and had allowed him to beat them into submission and expand their territory.

At the same time, another benefit was that the Grisk had a very unpleasant relationship with the Chiss Ascendancy.

The First Order had been eager to contact the people of the legendary Grand Admiral Thrawn and had made it a point to have a fruitful relationship with the blue skinned people.

While the First Order and the Ascendancy were not officially allies, they had developed a beneficial relationship over the last number of years. The First Order had made contact and under Kuvira's personal direction had negotiated a treaty of mutual benefit.

The Chiss pledged to help the First Order map their Unknown Regions, and how to navigate the turbulent hyperspace lanes that existed. In return the First Order pledged to protect the Chiss from enemies if they called on them for aid. It was similar to the treaty that had been negotiated between the Ascendancy and the Reconstituted Sith Empire millennia ago.

In fact, Kuvira had made a point about using that treaty as a template for their own negotiations.

Admittedly the Chiss were of limited help due to their unique method of navigating the unknown region hyperspace lanes. What ever that was had never been revealed, and the Chiss flatly refused to even mention it to the highest ranks of the First Order. Thankfully the Supreme Leader had been more then able to fill in the blanks using his own method.

Hux's actions against the Grisk had also been a great boon to the alliance. The Chiss had been very grateful at seeing one of their most dangerous regional neighbours pushed back and back from their territory. At least Hux had proven to be of some use, and the Supreme Leader's decision had been absolved.

So, what was he doing here?

Her footsteps echoed down the corridor and caught the attention of the two men. Kylo Ren simply turned to face her, his face hidden behind his mask as usual. Hux however, turned and adopted a respectful expression that fooled no one. His eyes and stance gave away his arrogance and his distaste.

"Grand Admiral, a please to see you again." Hux said in his snide tone.

That was another sign of Hux's lack of respect.

Kuvira did not hold the official title of Grand Admiral. Unlike the Empire, the First Order military ranking did not even have that official rank. Admittedly, Kuvira had all the authority of the rank anyway and did not need it to be actually conferred on her.

However, every time that Hux and her met, he referred to her as Grand Admiral. Anyone else might have though that Hux called her this because he wanted to show additional respect. However, she knew that Hux called her Grand Admiral only to highlight the fact that she was not, in fact, Grand Admiral.

Truly it was a level of pettiness she would expect from a child.

"General." She responded, keeping her true feelings carefully concealed. "I was unaware you would be joining us for this meeting. I thought your presence was required for the latest Grisk incursion."

Hux's face flushed with anger. Whether it was due to the mention of his enemy or his official assignment she did not know. Nor did she particularly care.

"Those disgusting lizards will not be troubling the First Order anytime soon. My fleet destroyed theirs and their worlds were subjected to orbital bombardment. We predict their casualties to be in the millions. They will be in no position to make any offense on us for at least a year." Hux snapped.

Kuvira nodded, mentally making a note to congratulate Captain Spire on board the _Ravager_ , (Hux's personal Resurgent class star destroyer). She had no doubt that it was his leadership that had actually won the battle. Though the orbital bombardment was defiantly Hux's style.

Clearly Nephitina knew this as well as she heard her give a short scoff and Kuvira could almost feel her rolling her eyes.

Hux glowered at her assistant. His eyes flashing with rage as he observed the Twi'lek. She knew his anger was partly due to her actions and her species. Like many others of the old Imperial remnants. Hux was a firm believer in human superiority, and the idea that all other races were at best second rate or at worst fit only to be slaves.

Seeing a Twi'lek (a race famous for centuries only for being the galaxies best slaves) in a lieutenant's uniform in direct service to the First Order's highest-ranking officer constantly rankled him.

Yet another reason, that he should never have been given command.

Still Nephitina had seemed to have made it her personal mission to raise Hux's blood pressure at every chance she got. She got a great deal of joy recounting the different shades of red that she could make his face change into.

Kuvira had often made a mental not to reprimand Nephitina for her actions in this manner. She wanted to remind her that it was not fitting behaviour for a lieutenant of the First Order. But each time she saw Hux, she found the urge to do this suddenly wither away.

She redirected her attention to the purpling General in front of her. "Excellent, but that still beg the question about your presence for this meeting, General".

Hux glowered but maintained his calm. "As I was explaining to Ren. After learning of the failure of the operation at Jakku, I made my way here immediately. Since the Resistance will now soon posses the location of Skywalker, I believe the Supreme Leader will need to here my plan of action."

Ignoring the not very subtle dig at the failure of the Jakku mission. Kuvira simply nodded. Time was of the essence and she had no time to debate things with Hux.

"Very well, shall we gentlemen?" She gestured to the door to the assembly chamber.

Kylo Ren made no reply by simply gestured with a flick of his hand. The door opened, seemingly of its own accord.

Now Hux rolled his eyes (behind Ren's back) at the blatant use of the force for an unnecessary gesture. However, Kuvira saw it as an attempt to remind Hux of his power and to remember his manners. Unfortunately, Hux was to stupid to recognise the warning.

Nephitina hung back at the entry way. As a lieutenant she was not of high enough rank to be a part of the meeting with Snoke. Besides, she was more then happy to not be present, as she had often said that the Supreme Leader 'gave her the creeps'.

As the trio walked down the central walk way, they past by the empty chairs and the desk of the assembly chamber. The chamber was designed to be able to house the entirety of the First Order's High Command. However, for now, the three individuals would occupy the main viewing platform beneath the massive holoprojector.

At another gesture from Kylo Ren, the projector activated and within a few seconds, the giant image of Supreme Leader Snoke appeared before them. Kuvira often thought that the Supreme Leader chose to project himself as a giant image of himself, partly to take focus off his mangled body, and to project physical power to his subordinates.

He appeared in focus. All of him a stony grey hue of his skin. His body was old, wounded, fragile and yet somehow powerful, all at the same time. His voice also carried an unmistakeable force of power and now it echoed across the chamber.

"Admiral Kuvira, General Hux, my apprentice. What is the situation of the mission to retrieve Lor San Tekka?"

Kuvira quickly summarised the events of the mission and the conclusion of where the situation now stood.

"And our sources in the Security Bureau, have confirmed that the droid is now in the possession of the Han Solo, who had reclaimed the Millennium Falcon and at last report is working with the traitor and the Jakku local who escaped the planet." Kuvira reported as she finished her report. Her face, devoid of emotion and her posture standing at ease in military posture. Her feet set apart and her hands clasped behind her back.

Snoke considered her words for a moment a then addressed the trio. "The droid will soon be delivered to the Resistance leading them to the last Jedi. If Skywalker returns, the new Jedi will rise" He stated. His tone did not change, but the implied threat in his voice was clear.

Hux, ever the kiss ass that he was spoke up. "Supreme Leader, I will full responsibility for the efforts to retrieve the droi…."

"GENERAL!." Snoke shouted as his voice echoed around the chamber and he stood to his full height,, cutting Hux off. He loomed over them for a moment, before he sat back down. "Our strategy must now change." He said softly.

Before Kuvira could over her suggestions, Hux again interposed. "The weapon. It is ready. I believe the time has come to use it. We shall destroy the government that supports the Resistance, the Republic. Without their friends to protect them, the Resistance will be vulnerable, and we will stop them before they reach Skywalker." Hux proclaimed, his voice already taking on the tone that he used in his rhetoric speeches.

Kuvira continued to stare at the Supreme Leader, and after a second he noticed. "Admiral, you disagree with the General's suggestion?"

Hux turned to Kuvira, the expression on his face seemed torn between outrage that his plan was being questioned. And anticipation of the Supreme Leader possibly siding with him over her.

"I agree that the General's suggestion has merit. The possibility of Skywalker's return forces our hand, and the advancement of our strategy. And if the war is to begin, we must decapitate the head of the beast in our opening strike." She stated flatly.

If the fact that she was talking about the destruction of an entire inhabited star system and the death of billions of people unnerved her, it never showed in her voice or face.

"I also agree that the plan has another benefit. Once the Republic is gone. The Resistance will be desperate to discover the location of our super weapon. They will throw all their resources at us in order to ensure that the weapon cannot be used again, either at them or another allied world. And in so doing…"

She trailed off and allowed the question to hang in the air. Snoke was silent for a second before his face broke into a smile. At least she was fairly certain it was a smile. On his ruined and scared face it was rather difficult to tell.

"They will reveal themselves." Snoke smirked.

Kuvira nodded. "And if they don't. Then we have either driven them into hiding or destroyed them."

But her next words brought the euphoria of the moment crashing down.

"However, the plan also presents a number of shortfalls. Firstly, the destruction of Hosnian Prime would deprive us of all our informants in the Senate. Along with the Centrist senators that have pledged to our cause. Their deaths would cause problems for the planned secession of those worlds from the Republic to the First Order."

Hux puffed up in dismissal. "It would make no difference. Once the senate and their home fleet are destroyed, they will have no choice but to submit to the Order!" He snarled.

Kuvira fought the urge to roll her eyes. Still when she responded her voice remained calm and tempered

"That was the attitude that Palpatine had when the Death Star was first completed. And it was the direct result of that short-sighted policy that caused dozens of worlds and thousands of people to flock to the banner of the rebellion. It was that action, that directly led to the downfall of the Empire. And I will not allow that to happen again." She said. Her words still calm but with a definite bite of steel in them.

Hux appeared to be struggling for a response. Kylo Ren remained silent as he observed the debate.

Snoke was the next one to speak. "What do you suggest Admiral?"

Kuvira continued, while Hux silently seethed.

"We must contact our centrist allies and instruct them to begin a discreet evacuation of the planet. They may take families and close friends and their senatorial entourage, but no more. Then they must begin to enact the official secession of their worlds from the New Republic to the First Order. Our contacts must also influence their military to amass as many of the New Republic's fleet at Hosnian Prime as possible. The damage from the attack to their military must be crushing to avoid a long conflict."

"We must also place our spies across the galaxy on high alert. Once the destruction has happened, the Resistance and their allies will be thrown into chaos. This will force them to communicate with their main base of operations with less secrecy. This will provide an opportunity to locate them and ensure that they are dealt with before they can scatter across the galaxy."

"Finally, the fleet must be placed on alert and moved to positions to secure the seceded territory and from there begin the blitzkrieg advance across the galaxy. Key Pro-Republic worlds like Chandrila, Mon Cala, Kashyyyk and Coreilla must be secured and blockaded before the they can begin to form an organised resistance.

"Finally, our interdictor cruisers must also be moved to crucial hyperspace lanes across the core and mid rim. With control of the galaxy's movement between the major sectors, we can effectively choke off all commercial traffic. This will force any resistant systems into an economic collapse, which we can implement at will."

"This will allow us to seize the galaxy and secure it within a number of months."

Kuvira finished off her summarised strategy and left the room silent. Ren remained still and silent. Hux meanwhile seemed to be fuming that he had not made similar suggestions and had his moment taken away.

Snoke observes her in silence for a second. Then he says. "Go. Oversee preparations."

Knowing she had been dismissed Kuvira bowed, as did Hux and they both said. "Yes, Supreme Leader."

Turning, they left the room.

Hux meanwhile was infuriated at the fact that the Supreme Leader had in fact, been addressing Kuvira rather then both of them when he instructed them to begin preparations. Still he knew that he had been dismissed by proxy as well and left the room in step with her.

Kylo Ren remained behind. No doubt he and Snoke needed to have their own personal conference regarding matters of the Force.

As they exited the chamber and began to walk down the opening corridor with Nephitina, Kuvira turned to face Hux. "I trust you will send your reserve forces from the Grisk border to the New Republic border to asset in the advance campaign General?" Her statement phrased as a question, when in fact it was an order.

Unfortunately, Hux missed that distinction.

"I will bring my entire force to the war against the New Republic Admiral. I fully expect that I will be the first of our forces to conquer Chandrila and New Alderaan." Hux boasted.

Kuvira continued walking but her eyes narrowed slightly. "You will be needed to maintain you position on our galactic frontier General. The Grisk are not extinct, nor are they the only threat we face on that frontier. But as you have stated the Grisk pose no major threat for the foreseeable future. Therefore, your fleet can afford to send roughly half its strength to aid in the campaign against the New Republic."

Hux stopped in his tracks, his face flushed with rage and his voice began to rise. "I will not be left to babysit the frontiers and watch empty space, while you lead our forces into the war that we have all been waiting for our entire lives. The war that I have been waiting for before you even knew the First Order existed!"

Kuvira also stopped and she slowly turned around to face Hux while Nephitina also stopped and tried to keep the anticipation from her face as she watched the show.

Slowly, deliberately Kuvira stepped forward until she was standing very much inside Hux's personal space. Hux's anger began to recede as he felt the gravity of the situation bear down on him. After letting him stew in his building fear for a few seconds, Kuvira spoke.

"It has been a stressful time for all of us General, so I am going to forget your lack of proper decorum just now. I will remind you that you are posting was bestowed on you by the Supreme Leader and ratified by High Command, and I have seen no evidence that the position as been changed. If it has please said so now so we can confirm your campaign placement with the Supreme Leader right now."

Once again she let silence hang as Hux continued to squirm under her gaze. "Do you wish to continue to press your case, General?"

Hux shrank in on himself and eventually ground out "No, Admiral. I will begin instructing my captains to transfer to the border locations you designate."

Kuvira stepped back and the tension left her face immediately as it settled back into her standard stoicism. "Excellent, I know I can relay on you to keep our territory secure General. We cannot afford to fight a war on two fronts at this crucial time. I also trust you will remain for the weapon firing? I could be grateful if you could deliver the address to the assembled troops once the weapon is ready to fire."

Hux looked up in surprise before he quickly responded. "Yes!, Grand Admiral, I would be honoured to oversee such a historic moment." He confirmed.

Kuvira nodded and without further ado, turned away and continued down the corridor with Nephitina following close behind.

Out of the corner of her eye she saw that Nephitina looked as puzzled as Hux did. "You wonder why I want hm to remain on this planet, much less to be the one to give the speech that will be remembered as the opening start of the war?"

Nephitina nodded vigorously, her lekku flapping as she moved her head. "Uh… yeah!" She exclaimed. "That guy is an idiot! A dangerous idiot, with an army at his command! I still don't get why you don't just have him shot, officially or unofficially. And now you give him the honour of the opening speech, that will do down in history. What is wrong with you?!"

She finished breathing heavily as she caught her breath.

Ordinarily Kuvira would make anyone who spoke to her in such a way pay dearly. However, Nephitina had a soft spot in her heart as was allowed certain privileges.

"Because this way I can keep him in my sights here to make sure that he relays the orders I have given to his fleet and army. If I allowed him to leave and return to his sector's territory he could cause an untold number of problems. This way he is under my observation and Captain Spire can be free to oversee the border territories properly. And I will be the first to admit that when it comes to passionate speeches, Hux has me beat. At least this way his one noticeable skill can be put to some use for the First Order.

Nephitina seemed momentarily shocked at her Admiral's (and maybe friends) underhandedness. But after a few seconds she carried on walking beside her.

"I see I have a lot to learn Admiral." She smirked. A smirk which Kuvira returned.

 **Hux POV**

General Hux was already starting to compile his speech together when the scope of Admiral Kuvira's machinations started to make themselves known to him.

Even as he felt his anger begin to rise he forced himself not to lose his temper here. The Starkiller base was full of observation equipment and even then it was full of Kuvira's fanatically loyal solder's around every corner.

He forced himself to remain calm and began to consider possibilities. One way or another, he would make sure that it would be him that would lead the First Order to victory. It would be his name that would be remembered in song and statues that would depict him would be raised across the galaxy.

After all. He thought as a smile spread across his face.

Even an Admiral that was invincible in battle, was as helpless as a child while she slept.


	8. Chapter 8 - Ultimatum

**Edboy4926: As always cheers for the reviews and the encouragement. Yes, Kuvira is determined to not place so much faith in Starkiller. A brute force worshipping person like Hux sees Starkiller as the sole factor in this war. Kuvira by contrast, only sees the value of Starkiller as an opening salvo. But she knows that it will take the entire First Order Fleet and careful strategy to truly win this war. So, she is planning how to conduct the war without Starkiller, as she believes in contingency plans.**

 **Above all she is determined to avoid the mistake Palpatine made by placing so much on the super weapon. She wants to ensure that history doesn't repeat itself.**

 **In answer to your Dragon Age question. (I assume you looked at my other story Return of the Imperium). It would take Kuvira at least a couple of years to place Thedas under the First Order (assuming she arrived alone). If she brought the entire First Order with her? A year at most. As for who she would support? Hmm, Kuvira is very much about law and order. And she will always do what she considers strategically sound, rather then what is morally right. So, she might support the Templers.**

 **However, the Mages do present a considerable opportunity to bring the power of magic to bear against her enemies and so she might side with the Mages for the sake of convenience and military might.**

 **In the end it depends on the circumstances of her involvement in the Dragon Age world.**

 **Loyal Imperial: Thank you for your support. Like you I am a supporter of the Imperial/First Order side and I am determined to have the story told from their side. All the movies, tv shows, comics etc are almost exclusively from the Rebel perspective. But each war has good and evil and flaws on both sides. I am adding a little balance to the conflict. So, you can rest assured that whatever happens there will be little 'redemption' in this story as I am well and truly sick of that happening in previously awesome 'bad guy' fanfic's.**

 **Random Reader: Thank you for the review. I was originally going to leave Hux completely out of this story. But some power plays and potential infighting and assassinations always make for more interesting reading.**

 **Chapter 8 – Ultimatum**

 **Starkiller Base**

 **Kylo Ren POV**

Kylo Ren watched as Admiral Kuvira and General Hux left the room to see to their various matters. For the moment, he was only thankful that Admiral Kuvira would undoubtably be seeing to the majority of them.

Kylo Ren tended to want to oversee everything himself as he constantly believed that (if left in the hands of others) the task would fail if he was not present to make certain it succeeded. If Hux was the one in charge of the First Order's operations he would most definitely feel that urge. He would have wanted to leave the room right now to make sure that pathetic fool did not cause further problems for him or his master.

However, with Kuvira taking charge of the opening salvo of the war against the New Republic, he felt he could trust that she would ensure it was carried out correctly.

As his thoughts turned once more to the Admiral he found himself watching her as she strode out of the room with Hux following close behind her. He black greatcoat billowed out behind her as she walked out of the room, in a way that was somehow impressive. Hux's coat was doing the same thing, yet somehow the sense of power did not carry over to him.

Not surprising since Kylo Ren could sense his petty jealously and anger swirling within his soul. At best he could project a sense of danger. But it was not the danger felt when confronting a worthy and skilled enemy. It was the sense one got when confronted by a rabid animal.

His attention turned once more to Kuvira.

He observed the way she walked in a way that projected confidence and command as easily as a sun projected light and heat. He had often admired that about her. He strength, fortitude and resolve were the equal of durusteel, and she projected her power so effortlessly, like breathing.

He had seen that power projected during their many sparing sessions on their respective flagships. The strength and poise never lost its intensity. Even in the moments when she had been knocked to the training ring floor, she was not weak, never weak.

He observed the way she marched with purpose and her eyes remained focused forward as she was clearly already running through the calculations and requirements that would need to be addressed before she could begin to conduct the next phase of their operations. He privately admitted to himself that he liked her eyes. Their vibrant emerald green colour that seemed to blaze like fire when she was determined was constantly impressive and almost hypnotic.

He observed the way that, even though her uniform, the hardness of her muscles and the curve of her ar…

With a mental (and almost physical jolt) he slammed his mind closed before his thoughts could travel any further down that path!

Such thoughts were beneath him!

He was Kylo Ren! Apprentice to Supreme Leader Snoke, the most powerful being in the galaxy. He was the heir to Darth Vader, heir to the Sith, heir to the Dark Side itself.

He had no time to indulge in pointless musing and even less reason to. His opinions of the Admiral were respectful and nothing more. He was confident of that. Besides if his master had sensed that thought, it could have led to difficulties for both him and the Admiral.

With an effort (that was far harder then it should have been) he dragged his thoughts away from the Admiral and turned them back to his master. Who still loomed over him in his black robes.

Snoke remains sitting in his throne like chair. For a moment he simply observed Ren as he let the two military commanders exit the assembly chamber completely. When he did resume speaking, his voice contained a new intimacy that had not been present during the military briefing.

Snoke nodded and continued. "I have never had a student with such promise before you." He spoke the words softly and with an emotion that could almost be called affection.

Kylo Ren internally glowed at the praise from his master. But he would not let it show. Either on his masked face or through the Force. "It is your teachings, that make me strong, Supreme Leader" He said bowing his head in respect.

Snoke demurred. "It is far more then that. It is where you are from. What you are made of." Snoke proclaimed.

"The Dark Side."

"And the Light"

"The finest sculptor cannot fashion a masterpiece from poor materials. He must have something strong, something pure, something unbreakable with which to work. I have you." He finished with a dramatic pause.

Snoke paused for a moment. Then continued his lesson.

"Kylo Ren, I watched the Galactic Empire rise, and then fall. The gullible prattle on about the triumph of truth and justice, of individualism and free will. As if such things were solid and real instead of simple subjective judgments."

He paused as he seemed to let the memories of a time long since past carry him away. But Kylo Ren knew better. His master was never lost in thought. After a second he seemed to come back to himself and regarded Kylo again.

"The historians have it all wrong. It was neither poor strategy nor arrogance that brought down the Empire. You know too well what did."

Ren nodded once. "Sentiment."

Snoke nodded in turn. "Yes. Such a simple thing. Such a foolish error of judgment. A momentary lapse in an otherwise exemplary life. Had Lord Vader not succumbed to emotion at the crucial moment—had the father killed the son—the Empire would have prevailed. And there would be no threat of Skywalker's return today."

Kylo Ren stiffened his resolve at begin reminded of his grandfather's mistake. "I am immune to the Light. By the grace of your training, I will not be seduced." He assured his master.

Snoke regarded him. He was pleased by his apprentice's confidence. But he sensed that it was not as strong as he was desperately trying to make it seem. "Your self-belief is commendable Kylo Ren. But do not let it blind you. No one knows the limits of his own power, until it has been tested to the utmost. As yours has not been. That day may yet come."

He paused to let the message of his words sink in. Then he continued.

"There's been an awakening in the Force. Have you felt it?" He asked Kylo Ren who only took a second before answering.

"Yes".

Snoke nodded approvingly. "The elements align, Kylo Ren. You alone are caught in the winds of the storm. You bond is not just to Vader. But to Skywalker himself."

"Leia."

Kylo Ren flinched as the names of the two people in the galaxy that brought him such emotional distress were mentioned. He felt his emotions roiling and the Dark Side gather around him as he felt his rage, anger, resentment and sorrow building.

"There is no need for concern. Together we will destroy the Resistance, and the last Jedi."

Snoke appraised him for a moment. Then the Supreme Leader responded to his apprentice's reassurance.

"We shall see. We shall see." The Supreme Leader's voice had not finished echoing through the assembly chamber before the holoprojection vanished from sight, leaving Kylo Ren alone with his thoughts.

 **Kuvira POV**

Kuvira looked up from the holographic central display in the centre of the Central Command bunker on Starkiller Base.

She had spent the last couple of hours observing the galactic map that was being displayed on the holoprojector. She had been moving icons displaying First Order fleets and armies arranged all across their vast territory through the Unknown Regions and the Outer Rim.

She had been observing hundreds of reports and calculations detailing numbers, experience, ammunitions, officer lists and ship status for dozens of separate fleets, hundreds of strike forces, and thousands of personnel. It had been up to her to place the right units in the right positions at the right time.

After hours of ceaseless concentration and countless alterations to the strategy map. Along with ever changing information as her team of officers, aids and droids kept updating her statistics. She felt that she was drawing to a close.

She stepped back and observed her final result.

All the fleets of the First Order (minus the forces that would remain in their territory to keep the peace and defend against any incursion) were placed on the frontiers of their territory and all of them were poised to strike into the galactic core and the heart of the New Republic when the word was given.

All forces had been placed on alert and the commanding officers and army units had been informed that they would be required to move at a moments notice.

On the galaxy map key target planets had been marked and each had a similarly marked fleet that had been assigned to conquer it.

The 2nd Fleet was assigned to Chandrila. The 3rd Fleet would be heading to Corellia and Kashyyyk (as the Wookie's had no space force), the 4th Fleet would head to Mon Cala and the 5th Fleet to Coruscant. Each fleet would move to their target the second the opening attack had been completed. The delay was to allow any unseen effects of the Starkiller weapon on the galaxy or hyperspace to dissipate or at least be observed and assessed.

The 6th and 7th Fleets would be tasked with securing the territory of the centrist worlds that were preparing to secede from the New Republic. The expected territorial gains were massive. Dozens of systems would suddenly be under their control. Therefore, a large effort needed to be made to ensure that the territory was protected and properly integrated into the First Order as fast and efficiently as possible.

They could not afford to be fighting rebellions and large-scale battles from the locals of those worlds if they were to continue their quick advance into enemy territory.

Based on repeated surveys and the undercover actions of the First Order Security Bureau, that did not seem likely. However, they could not afford to assume anything.

The 8th and 9th Fleets would be dispersed across the New Republic to begin the dismantling of the rebellious government and the surrender of those worlds to the First Order.

Some worlds had strong orbital defences or a planetary militia, and in some cases even a planetary defence fleet. Those worlds might require a small number of star destroyers to bring to heel. But it was likely that they would recognise a hopeless flight when they saw one.

Besides those defended systems were few and far between. While the New Republic maintained an adequate military and starfleet, some Centrist senators like Erudo Ro-Kiintor of Hevurion had lobbied for more government funding to be diverted to shoring up the defences of individual worlds.

Kuvira could not help a sardonic smile forming on her lips as she made a mental note to thank the good senator for all his hard work on their behalf and to send him a gift after Hevurion officially joined the First Order.

For worlds that had no standing defences, a single Imperial Class Star Destroyer would be enough to cower the resident into surrender and after that some simple rotation of their forces between those worlds would ensure that their forces remained mobile but were still in a position to remind the residents at the folly of resisting them.

One of the worlds they were going to focus on was Lothal.

The mess that the rebel forces had caused the Empire on Lothal during the Galactic Civil War was legendary. Especially the actions of the infamous 'Ghost Cell'. They along with the rest of the rebels had caused Lothal to rise up and become a hotbed of dissent and rebellion.

The members of the Ghost cell were no longer on Lothal. They had scattered across the galaxy along their own paths after the war had ended. Their locations were currently unknown. But their memories remained strong on the planet. And just because they were not there now, did not mean they could not return.

While Lothal had not prospered under the chaos of the New Republic, it was more then likely they would see the First Order's return and remember their time under the Empire. This would undoubtable cause them to reignite the memories of the notorious Ghost rebels and strive to oppose the rule of the First Order.

Worst of all. It was through their actions that Grand Admiral Thrawn had been taken from them. It was because of them that the Empire had lost its greatest military leader right when it needed him most.

That was something that Kuvira would never forgive Lothal for. She was convinced if Thrawn had been leading their armies at Yavin, Hoth and Endor. Matters would have resulted differently.

Kuvira refused to allow that world to become such a problem again. So, she had ordered that four Resurgent Class Star Destroyers be stationed at Lothal during the opening campaign. If she had to bombard Lothal into dust to make sure it would not cause such trouble again, she would do so.

The 10th Fleet (Hux's fleet) would remain within their territory in the Unknown Regions and guard their borders with the Grisk, the Chiss and the other regional powers. If only she could have placed Hux with them and out of her way! She thought with a mental grimace.

But she could not let the fool out of her sight. The best way to make sure that he caused no damage or danger to their plans and strategy was to keep him within reach and within her personal sphere or influence.

Finally, the 1st Fleet would be left under Kuvira's personal command. Their task would be to protect Starkiller in the immediate aftermath of it being fired. And once the Resistance base was discovered through their spy network, they would immediately jump to the base and wipe it off the map.

With two dozen Resurgent Class Star Destroyers, ten Imperial Class and six interdictor cruisers making up the 1st Fleet, the Resistance would have no chance of opposing their attack openly.

Kuvira backed away from the galactic display map and took a moment to observe her strategic planning. She checked, and double checked as she observed all her placements and their relevant missions.

She had back up plans of course.

She had a plan in case Starkiller Base did not work.

She had a plan in case the New Republic Fleet survived the destruction of Hosnian Prime

She had a plan in case the Resistance was able to convince the New Republic to declare war first.

She had a plan in case Luke Skywalker returned.

And she had a plan in case Hux tried something stupid.

She was a firm believer in the philosophy that a plan must be made for every possibility no matter how unlikely. However, she also understood that no plan survived contact with the enemy.

She turned her back on the display, confident that she had made as effective a plan as she could make. Anything from now would simply be second guessing. She turned to the small army of aides and officers that occupied the chamber with her.

The stood in silence. Waiting for her command.

She soon gave it.

"The plan is complete. Note down the information and relay the necessary orders to the relevant fleet commanders. Ensure that they understand that they are only to take their assigned positions. They are not to move toward their assigned target until the order is given by either myself, or the Supreme Leader himself." She stated simply but unmistakably.

"Make sure they are also aware that they are to operate under the strictest secrecy. They and their first officers are the only ones to know what the preparation and movements are for. To the rest of their forces this is a simple relocation until further notice. I will let them know when they can revel their mission to their crews."

The crew nodded and at her signal, began to move toward the projector so that they could download the data and begin to send the needed information to the relevant commanders. The process would take some time. The logistics and military aspects of the plan had been calculated but would need to be actually implemented.

However, that was to her advantage. What she had planned would require at least a day or two to be finished. It would also be a last chance to grant the First Order some galactic sympathy. And no matter what, it would destroy what good will the Resistance had managed to retain these last few years.

She turned to Nephitina, who as always was standing vigilantly to the side of the room with her datapad in hand.

She beckoned the Twi'lek over to her as the chamber staff began to send out the various messages to the commanders of the First Order Fleets and armies around the galaxy.

"Contact our ambassador to the New Republic senate. Tell him that I need to address the entire Senate as soon as possible. Tell him to make it clear that this is a matter of urgency in response to a diplomatic incident performed against the First Order on their behalf." She said to the Lieutenant

Nephitina typed for a few seconds and then turned back to face Kuvira.

"Message sent Admiral. I figured that you would want to address the senate at some point, so I had the message drafted ahead of time." She said with a gloating smirk.

Kuvira raised an eyebrow for a second before she allowed her lips to break into a small grin. "Excellent work Lieutenant. I trust that you will show equal skill and speed when sending the numerous covert messages to the centrist senators that we have a vested interest in?"

Nephitina let out a small sarcastic huff before she got to work typing furiously as she moved toward the doorway and out of the room.

Kuvira watched her go. She was content to give Nephitina the rest of the day off while sent the coded messages.

Besides Kuvira had her own preparations to make.

She walked towards the doorway that Nephitina had just exited from. She would return to her quarters and get prepared and properly attired.

After all it was not every day you got to address the entire Republic Senate.

 **Hosnian Prime: New Republic Senate**

 **Korr Sella POV**

Korr Sella (known as Kory to her friends) walked down the halls of the New Republic Senate building on the capital world of Hosnian Prime. She wore her green Resistance uniform with the symbol of her Lieutenant's rank displayed proudly over her left breast. As the official ambassador for the Resistance to the New Republic senate, she made a point of looking her best and professional at all times.

She had been informed via the senate's private communication network that an emergency session was taking place today and that attendance was required.

That would not have worried her much. Except an attachment to the announcement had stated that her presence as Resistance representative was not only required.

It was demanded.

As she walked through the halls and the crowds of senators, ambassadors, aides and civilian workers, she saw them look at her uniform with mixed reactions.

The civilian labours more often then not gave her a nod, a smile, or a casual thumb's (if they were a species with thumbs) up. She smiled and gave as professional a gesture in return when she could. Civilians were sometimes the most respectful and trusting of the Resistance these days.

It made sense. They (like her) had been raised on the stories of the glorious and heroic rebellion and they were happy to support the new successor organisation that had been built on its memory. The problem was they did not really no anything about the larger issued that were at the heart of the Resistance's existence.

Oh, they knew about the First Order of course. It was common galactic knowledge after the last few years.

But to the everyday citizen of the Republic. The First Order was just a little-known galactic government in the far outer rim that had decided to keep the institutions of the Empire. They knew that the First Order was expanding into the outer rim Republic worlds. But to most citizens in the core, that was not their problem to deal with.

Korr sighed. The Resistance seemed to have support from a lot of the Republic citizenry. But it was support that was built on nostalgia, childhood stories and rumour. They had no desire of the true dangers and possibilities in the future. Nor did they seem to want to find out.

Still she should be glad they supported them that much. As she walked past the senators and the other government officials the reaction was very different.

Some of them flat out ignored her as she past by. And yet they were the ones that she preferred,

Of the rest of the senate, half of them their snickered behind their hands at them. Laughing behind their backs (and sometimes to their faces) about the Resistance. How they considered it a useless organisation, filled with idealistic idiots. And founded by an old woman who was so desperate for attention that she had recreated a mini rebel alliance to remind her of her glory days.

She clenched her fists as she walked past on of those senators. She overheard him whisper to his friend that General Organa was like one of those crazy spinster ladies who collected hordes of pet Gizka in her home. She thrust her shoulders back and put a lid on her anger as she continued towards the senate chamber.

Unfortunately, along the way she encountered some of the other group of senators. Those who thought that the Resistance as a dangerous 'borderline terrorist' organisation that was actually causing harm to the Republic by provoking the First Order.

Those ones actually made her madder. They had no idea what was coming if they continued to ignore all of the Resistance's warnings. They had no idea what the Resistance was risking and had lost to try to keep them and all the Republic save!

Instead the preferred to go to fancy senate parties and in the brief moments when they actually did their jobs, simply argue about nonsense while achieving nothing!

She settled for shaking her head in disgust and carried on.

Kory made her way into the senate chamber and made her way to the area that was reserved for the Resistance among the hundreds of other sections of the member worlds of the New Republic. As the Resistance was not recognised as a sovereign entity amount he New Republic. They did not have their own separate stand or most of the other attachments to a Republic member world.

However, as a notable private military force that was attached (unofficially or not) with the New Republic government. They had access to their own residence in the district and could ask for schedule time for address the senate with urgent matters.

However, this time they had been the ones who had been called to attend this time. Usually the senate tied every trick they could think of to prevent them from ever setting foot in the chamber, from miscommunication to increased guards at the door.

So, this sudden demand for the Resistance's presence was a little disconcerting.

Still, this might be a good thing. This might be a sign that they were finally starting to listen to them. That maybe they were finally seeing the First Order for what it was. It was the Empire come again. And they needed to be ready to fight them. To fight them and destroy them if the Republic and democracy was going to survive.

She took her place at her reserved podium with her staff and looked out across the chamber as she watched the senators take their places at their usual podiums. However, as she watched them she could not help but notice the way they hurried to their podiums, and the absence of the usual chatter.

Normally she would wait for at least half an hour she watched the hundreds of senators make their way lazily into the chamber to their usual seats chatting and making idle conversation or last-minute political deals.

Now, it almost seemed like there was an air of foreboding hanging over the entire senate. She could not help but start to get nervous. Just what had happened?

Had the First Order attacked? Were they official at war? Did they want her here to ensure that the Resistance would help the New Republic fleet?

She doubted those thoughts, as the Resistance would certainly have contacted her if war had been declared.

But then, what was the problem.

Quickly, very quickly. The entire senate was called into order and the Chancellor of the senate stepped up to the central platform began to type away into his control console.

Official the head of state for the New Republic would be the Supreme Chancellor. However, since the abdication of Mon Mothma years ago, the position had been deliberately left mostly redundant with the deduction in central power.

The current head of state was Chancellor Lanever Villecham. He had come to power with the numbers barely needed to take the position. This was mainly because with the factions of the senate being completely divided against each other. Almost no one could attain the needed votes for the position.

He had focused his term in office around improving trade relations with neutral systems in the Trans-Hydian Borderlands, as they had been disaffected from the Republic for decades. His time in office also saw the rise of the First Order, as successor to the Galactic Empire. Unfortunately, Villecham did not consider the First Order a threat so long as they abided by the dictates of the Galactic Concordance.

A viewpoint that Sella and the Resistance had not been able to change. Despite repeated efforts.

More recently the Republic had voted to create the post of First Senator to take over the role of Supreme Chancellor. If nothing else it would make the New Republic more effective.

(Not that it could get much less effective)

At first Senator Organa had been the Populist candidate for the position of First Senator. But with the revelation of her relationship to the infamous Darth Vader her political career had been utterly destroyed.

And after that the creation of the First Senator position was placed on hold. So, the Chancellor was still was given the responsibility of placing matters before the senate and overseeing the procedure.

And now, Chancellor Lanever Villecham rose from his seat and opened the voice comm to enhance his voice across the chamber. And the multiple camera drones that floated endlessly around the room ensured that his voice and words would carry across the holo net and galaxy.

"This emergency session of the Republic Senate had been called to order on matters of the most seriousness." The Chancellor boomed out. His voice was not one of authority or leadership. But the severity of his words did the job for him.

"The chair calls on representative Korr Sella of the private military known as 'the Resistance' to stand before the senate." Villecham demanded.

That immediately signalled to Kory that something was very wrong. However, with as mush dignity as she could, she stood up on her podium and activated the comms and camera feed.

Trying desperately to ignore the jelly like feeling in her legs.

"The chair also recognises ambassador Selek Tann of the First Order". Villecham announced. Across the room another figure stood, and the camera feeds locked on as they activated their podium controls too.

She was a woman of roughly Kory's age. She had a lithe figure, with short cropped blond hair, blue eyes and some form of cyborg implants just above her left eye that seemed to act as a metal eyebrow. She was also wearing the standard black First Order military uniform. Not surprising given that the First Order was more of a military junta then a proper state.

Two stormtroopers in white armour flanked her at all times, and even now stood guard on her podium.

It caused another flash of anger in Kory. The Galactic Concordance expressly forbade the training of new stormtroopers. But the First Order could show proof that they had broken that term right in the senate chamber, and still nothing happened!

The ambassador stepped forward and began what could only be described as a rant.

"Senators of the New Republic." She began in a voice of such icy calm that it almost made Kory shiver. Based on how many senators shifted in their seats, they felt it too.

"Exactly two standard rotations ago. The First Order's citizens were suddenly and deliberately attacked and killed. By hostile forces of the terrorist organisation known as the Resistance! This attack took place on the world of Jakku. Which as we all know, was formally ceded to the First Order prior to this attack as part of a legal and completed transaction between this senate and the First Order High Command."

Kory could not help herself as these accusations were spewed. Yes, she knew that the mission to Jakku had taken place. But given the battle that had happened, the First Order was hardly blameless.

"This is a lie!" She yelled into her comm as her voice rang out over the chamber. But the Chancellor muted her podium immediately

"The senate does not recognise the representative for the Resistance at this time!" Villecham thundered. With no way to make herself heard, Kory backed down.

Ambassador Tann nodded her thanks to the chancellor. "I do not make this statement without ample proof. I have a data file, taken from the security and forward cameras on our diplomatic ships which catalogue the attack in question". Tann typed a few commands into her podium and after an approval from the Chancellor's podium a massive screen was displayed to the entire senate.

The holo displayed what Kory recognised as Tekka's village on Jakku. The senate watched as the First Order envoy stepped out to meet Tekka and the conversation was transmitted via the ships forward camera.

" _I am Lucius Varro, of the First Order Diplomatic Corps. I have been sent to find you and request that you accompany me back to my superiors. They want to ask you a few questions about Jedi Lore, which we understand is your area of expertise."_

" _I thank you for the invitation, but I must regretfully decline. I have a number of responsibilities here that I must attend too." Lor stated in an equally polite but clearly distrustful and disinterested tone. He felt the people around him shift as if expecting combat._

" _My superiors have instructed me to assure you that you will be very well compensated for your time and aid. You must know that the First Order is very wealthy. And, forgive me for saying so, but surely you and your people would enjoy better accommodations then this."_

" _I am afraid my place is here, where I am needed. As you have already pointed out Jakku is a harsh and difficult world. And here all must pull their weight and make their contribution to the community if the community is to survive. If I were to leave it would be a selfish action."_

" _I understand completely Mr Tekka. After all, that is the entire principle behind the First Order. Ensuring that all work together to ensure that the unified whole prospers as one. We too take a heavy stance on those who would seek individual profit instead of aiding to help the unit._

 _With that in mind, I have a final offer that I am sure you would agree is mutually beneficial._

 _My superiors have confirmed that if you were to aid us in this endeavour. You and all you fellows in this village would be offered residence on one of our newest and most idyllic worlds, possibly Urdak. There you would live comfortable lives together, you could continue your studies, and you would enjoy the full protection of the First Order. In addition, within 20 years, you and all your colleagues would also be granted citizenship, with all the rights and privileges thereof._

" _I would rather toil in the burning sands of this planet then aid the First Order in its quest to plunge the galaxy into darkness."_

Whatever Varro said in return was hindered by a sudden burst of corruption and static in the video feed. Kory suspected what had been said had been needed to be removed from the video to make the First Order's case more effective.

The next audible part of the video that could be seen or hear was the sight of the villagers shooting Varro and the stormtroopers that had come with him dead.

The Senate gasped at the display of violence and the death shown before their eyes.

Next on the recording, a figure came running out of the darkness and into the First Order ship. The camera shifted to a different camera inside the ship's cockpit. Just in time to watch the figure blast the two pilots who had only just managed to leave their seats before their bodies collapsed down to the floor.

As the figure turned away to leave the ship the camera froze and homed in on his face. Tann immediately muted the feed and reactivated her comm system. "As you can plainly see. The assailant is Poe Dameron. A well-known member of the Resistance and a man who had cost the First Order many lives in his terrorist activities." Tann announced.

The senate began muttering to themselves and casting accusing looks at Sella. But Tann was not finished. She activated the feed again and it displayed Poe blasting more Stormtroopers during the attack and finally his capture at the hands of Kylo Ren. Finally, she turned off the footage and readdressed the senate.

"As you can also see the Resistance terrorist Poe Dameron killed First Order pilots in cold blood. Along with a number of our valiant soldiers and finally, he attempted to assassinate one of our highest-ranking leaders in Lord Ren. And all of this took place on territory that is official recognised as belonging to the First Order! "

Tann had begun to shout out her condemnations and her voice echoed around the room.

"This is undeniable proof of what the First Order and many in the New Republic have known for years. That the Resistance terrorist organisation has become an intolerable threat to the safety and security of the First Order and its citizens!"

She turned her blazing eyes to face Kory's direction.

"And I have been informed that the Supreme Leader has decided to eliminate that threat once and for all. We will not stand for these attacks on our person any longer!"

The senate began to shout out and argue amongst themselves. However, from what Kory could hear, the vast majority of the senate was supporting the First Order's accusations, and many were looking at Kory with condemnation (and in some Centrist cases triumph) in their eyes.

The Chancellor muted the senate podium speakers and called for silence, which eventually returned.

"Do you have anything to refute this evidence representative Korr Sella?" The Chancellor asked her.

Kory through desperately. Trying to think of something that would prevent this latest disaster for the Resistance.

But there was nothing.

The attack had happened on a First Order world. The ambassador had clearly not made any threatening move before he was killed. And Poe had clearly killed those people in the pilot cockpit while they were unarmed.

She knew he must have needed to do it for the sake of the mission. But that did not change the fact that it put the Resistance in the wrong in terms of intergalactic and diplomatic law. And since she had been told that the community on Jakku had surrendered and were spared after the battle. She knew she could not turn the pressure of a moral/ethical embarrassment back on ambassador Tann.

Even if she mentioned the greater mission to recover the map to Luke Skywalker. She knew that the senate would not be impressed. To them Luke Skywalker was nothing but the lingering gasp of a religion that should have died long ago and faded into myth. And still others now only saw him as the son of Darth Vader. And potentially another Vader in waiting.

Even those that remembered him as the hero of the rebellion would not be willing to risk their political careers over him.

The Resistance had nothing to justify their actions to the Senate. And even as Sella tried to think of something, anything to mitigate the damage of all this. It seemed that Tann was not prepared to grant her that time.

"I will take the terrorist representative's silence as confirmation that they have nothing to counter these outrageous acts and the avalanche of evidence against them. This is after all, not the first unprovoked attack that the First Order has had to suffer at their hand. So, I will make our position clear."

Tann straightened and placed something into her podium command console. "I have been given a message to deliver to this senate directly from the Commander in Chief of the First Order, Admiral Kuvira.

As the senate began to gasp and mutter between themselves about the situation that was unfolding a giant-sized hologram of the Admiral appeared to dominate the entire chamber. She stood in parade rest with her full uniform clearly newly pressed and cleaned for this occasion. And as she spoke, her words contained seemingly barely contained fury.

" _The terrorists that call themselves 'The Resistance' have carried out a barbaric attack on our people, our citizens and on our own territory."_ Her amplified voice rang out across the chamber. Her tone causing many senators to shrink in their seats as if they were scolded children.

" _Among the dead was a man who had devoted over a decade of his life to the pursuit of peace and diplomacy. Envoy Lucius Varro."_ Her words trailing off as she bowed her head as if in a morning gesture of respect

The senate began to give the hologram and Tann sympathetic looks and even offered whispered condolences. While others began to turn even darker gazes towards Sella.

Sella wilted as she watched these events take place. Even as she felt her hatred of Admiral Kuvira skyrocket for taking advantage of this faked emotional response. She had to admit she knew how to play to a crowd.

Kuvira continued. _"This is_ _only the latest attack committed against the First Order by the Resistance. And once again our citizens lives have been lost. We will suffer this no more!"_

The hologram boomed. And the entire senate flinched.

" _Therefore, we present the following ultimatum. The New Republic has 48 galactic standard hours to disavow and reveal any and all Resistance members, bases, ships and locations to the First Order. Additionally, the Resistance had the same amount of time to contact us and agree to total surrender to our authority and to face our justice."_

" _These demands are not negotiable, nor are they open to debate. If we do not have the official and full surrender of the entire Resistance within the 48-hour limit. We will consider the events on Jakku as approved by the New Republic senate and view it as an act of war!"_

The Senate gasped, and Sella began to feel faint at the implications of what was unfolding. But Kuvira had one more thing to say.

" _If you are watching this members and leaders of the Resistance then know this. Your actions and aggressive attacks have forced our hand. If you do not surrender yourselves to face justice for your many crimes against the First Order. Then all that follows will rest squarely on your shoulders."_

With that Kuvira gave a short pause and let the weight of her final words sink into the air.

" _48 hours"._

Then her hologram faded, and silence filled the senate hall.

Then the chamber exploded as chaos erupted from every throat as the governing body of the New Republic descended into anarchy and no amount of calls for order by Chancellor Villecham could force it to abate.

Sella was forced to practically flee the senate chamber as the condemnations, accusations and in some cases near physical assaults came at her and her team from all sides.

Finally, she managed to reach her representative office where she wasted no time in sealing off the Resistance office block from the rest of the building to bar the entryway to the quickly growing crowd of protesters that was increasing as word of the events in the senate spread across the planet.

The last thing she did before she collapsed into a chair next to her offices decorative ch'hala tree was to fire off an urgent message to D'Qar explaining the situation and asking/begging for instructions.

With that done Sella let the stress of the day take her as she closed her eyes, lent her head back and listened to the protesting crowd grow in size and anger outside the senate building.

 **Starkiller Base**

 **First Order Security Bureau**

"Sir, Delta Source has been activated!"


	9. Chapter 9 - Meetings and Intelligence

**To all readers I have a quick request. I have received in my reviews requests to make Kuvira and Kylo Ren a couple. And as you have probably noticed I have added some hints of deeper feelings developing between them. I am happy to make a romance develop between them. However, I have wondered at time if that is simply to cliché and is a very obvious thing to have happen. As it does honestly happen in most stories like this.**

 **Anyway, I basically want readers to tell me via Reviews if they want a relationship to develop between Kylo Ren and Kuvira. Or if they would prefer they remain professional.**

 **Also, if you can chuck in some ideas for the course the story should take I would greatly appreciate it. I am eager to take all idea's into account.**

 **Cheers.**

 **Chapter 9 – Meetings and Intelligence**

 **D'Qar, Resistance Base**

"Senator please, understand the mission to Jakku had to take place. Our operative needed to gather the information held by Lor San Tekka. And he was completely unaware that the planet had been ceded to the First Order as he was required to operate under a communication blackout."

Leia felt a rabidly increasing urge to massage her temples as she felt the stress headache begin to reach a new level of pain. It only spiked further when it was clear that the Senator was not sympathetic in the slightest. Not that she expected her to be.

"You know well enough General, that ignorance of the law is not an excuse for breaking them!"

Leia winced. Senator Kayl had been a long-term friend of hers during her days in the Senate. And she had been one of the Resistance's staunches backers within the New Republic Senate during the years since she had founded the organisation. She represented her world of Deralia in the senate and she represented it well. And as a member of the populist party, she had been an ally of Leia for years.

That made it all the more painful to hear her call Leia by her rank, instead of her name. It was only a reminder of just how serious the situation was and how precarious the Resistance's position truely was.

"You were informed of the sale of Jakku to the First Order immediately after the purchase had been completed. I know, because I am the one who told your representative Kor Sella. Once you knew about the sale, communication blackout or not, you should have recalled your pilot. You had to know the ramifications of him even being caught on their territory."

Kayl's exasperated expression quickly changed back to angry condemnation.

"Instead you allowed him to kill their soldiers without provocation and attempt to assassinate one of their leadership. And all the while allowing these actions to be recorded. And now we stand on the brink of a new galactic war!" Kayl shouted through the hologram display being projected over the main conference table in Leia's private chambers.

Leia internally cringed at the naked hostility in her friend's voice. But she had faced down the likes of Tarkin and Darth Vader. She could project strength in the face of this.

But Kayl was not finished.

"The senate, the planet, the entire galaxy has been in uproar since the ultimatum was delivered. There are riots on the streets of Hosnian Prime, and the protests outside the senate building have only gotten bigger and bigger! Representative Sella has barricaded herself in her office. And there are crowds outside all but demanding her head.

The entire Home fleet has been called to assemble at Hosnian Prime to guard against a sudden lightning strike against the capital if the ultimatum runs out before…." Kayl trailed off.

Leia immediately jerked her attention into high alert. When she had contacted Kayl she had done it to get an idea of how the senate was going to respond to the ultimatum from the First Order. But she had not been able to get a word in before the irate senator had begun screaming at her.

Now however they were getting back to the heart of the matter. On what the senate would decide. And judging by the reaction of a long-time ally of hers. It did not look promising.

"What is the senate going to do Kayl? How are they responding to the ultimatum?" She asked while unintentionally holding her breath.

Kayl's temper seemed to have burned out as she signed and placed her hand on her forehead which she slowly dragged down her face in weary frustration.

"Most of the allotted time as pasted, but the senate has not decided anything official yet. You know how deadlocked the senate has been for years. And with a crisis like this they are even more disordered then usual. The only reason the fleet has been called is because the one thing they all agree on is they want to save their own lives." She said with a note of contempt.

Leia nodded. Equally disgusted.

"The senate is in brief recess at the moment, which is the only way I am able to make this call. But we will be reconvening within a few hours, and likely stay there until the matter is resolved or time runs out. But I can already tell you that it doesn't look good for the Resistance. But I know you probably guessed that anyway."

Leia nodded sadly. She had hoped that the senate might take the threat from the First Order as the proof they needed to see the First Order for a genuine threat. Afterall, they had assumed that the First Order was a loud but small minor power in the backwoods of the galaxy. But even the most hard-headed senator knew that a smaller power did not threaten war against a stronger one, not even in a bluff.

She had hoped that they would rally to fight an enemy that had clearly declared itself an enemy and that they would join with the Resistance against the First Order.

But that, like many of her hopes and ideals was clearly not going to survive meeting with reality.

"The senate is already demanding that all known associates of the Resistance be arrested and prepared to be handed over to the First Order immediately. They are also demanding that those associates be interrogated about the location of all the Resistance's members, bases and allies."

She paused as she seemed to struggle with the words.

"And the more radical senators have demanded that the interrogation of the Resistance prisoners to be very, thorough."

Leia stiffened. "The senate is suggesting the use of torture on my people?!" She demanded. Her own anger rising now at the injustice of it. Also, at the fresh blow to her ideals as the New Republic was so quick to resort to such methods used by the Empire.

Kayl did not deny it. "They are scared Leia. Already most of the centralist party has plans to flee the planet within the next few hours. They say they are determined to ensure they and their worlds do not get dragged into a war because of the Resistance's 'insanity'. They are getting desperate and they feel that such actions are preferable to a war. Right now, they are willing to do anything to ensure that doesn't happen."

Leia scoffed at the weak excuse and muttered the old Echani proverb. "In times of war the law falls silent." She spat in disgust.

Kayl sighed and moved off the unpleasant topic. "Leia I don't think I can stop the senate from throwing the Resistance to the First Order. The support for that course of action is almost overwhelming. But if you tell me what the information you were after on Jakku was I might be able to do something. If it was as important as you claim then maybe that might be enough to convince the senate to listen. And if it is damaging to the First Order then it might be enough to pressure them to withdraw their threat."

Leia hesitated. She knew that the information would not be enough to convince the senate. The fact was that the senate felt that Luke was a distant travelling hermit at best. Even if they did not, they would not place one person's life above galactic peace.

In fact, they might decide to be even more against the Resistance if they learned they caused a war over something so 'trivial'.

Besides, while she trusted Kayl. She did not trust many of the senators in the New Republic. And while she knew that the First Order knew what the map led too. The less information they had the better.

"I am sorry Karl, but that information is too important. It needs to remain as secret as possible". She said resignedly.

At this Kayl seemed to lose her patience.

"Leia you don't seem to fully understand the position you are in! The senate has been against you for years but now they are howling for your blood. And in case you have forgotten my home world is in the outer rim territories near the border with the First Order. If a war breaks out it is going to hit my world and my people first and I am not willing to stand by and let that happen.

Now I am trying to remain cool headed and to remember all your past works and your warnings about the First Order. But you are making it very difficult!

If you don't give me something, anything, to show that the Resistance was in someway justified in its actions. That there is a reason to protect you from the consequences. Then I will have no choice but to advocate the acceptance of the First Order's terms. I will not allow the galaxy to be plunged into a war for a reckless organisation that keeps secrets from its supposed allies!"

Leia felt her heart grow cold. Ever since she had received the report from Sella about the ultimatum she had known these things would happen. It was after all in warfare and times of panic when people learned who their true friends were.

Already she had received condemnations and loss of contact with many allies and informants from across the galaxy. But she had not expected it from someone who was not only a political ally but a long-time friend.

She could understand Kayl's anger and her concern for Deralia was a legitimate concern. The planet was rich (by outer rim standards), populous and a climate that many worlds would kill for. If the galaxy fell into war her world would be an easy and early target. But she could not allow her friendships to determine her actions. The galaxy was more important.

She could only thank the force that Kayl did not know the location of the D'Qar base. No one in the senate had been trusted with that information for exactly these reasons. That secret was not shared with anyone who was not a full member of the Resistance. And even then it was only shared on a need to know basis as they were very well aware that the First Order had an intact and extensive intelligence service of its own. They had already encountered and neutralised a number of attempted infiltrators into their ranks.

With a deep sigh of resignation, she turned back to Kayl's blue tinged image and steeled herself for what would happen next.

"Kayl, please believe me when I say that I understand, and I wish I could tell you everything. I wish I could tell you so much. But the information on Jakku may very well be the key to saving the galaxy for the First Order. That is too important to be used as bargaining chip with the senate."

She turned her ashen face to look her friend in the eye. "I am sorry, Kayl." She almost whispered.

Kayl's face looked stricken for a moment. Then it turned stony and resolute. "Then I am sorry too, General Organa." And with that the image of her (former?) friend flickered and died. And Leia was left alone in her office as she struggled to hold back tears.

Once again she had lost a close friend to this ceaseless struggle. She had lost too many as it was. Whether it was to death or broken ties it did not matter, the outcome was the same.

And with each loss, she and the Resistance grew weaker.

She was not sure how long she sat in her chair behind her desk. It could have been hours. It could have only been minutes. Time seemed to slip away as she was caught up in her whirlwind of thoughts, doubts, recriminations and what if's. But eventually she came back to herself.

She took a few moments to compose herself and then she activated her intercom and contacted Admiral Ackbar to come into her office from the main tactical centre within the base. She then activated her long distance holocom and contacted Admiral Amilyn Holdo on her home world of Gatalenta. Finally, she contacted Kor Sella directly at her office in the Senate building on Hosnian Prime. If what Kayl had said was true, she would likely not be anywhere else.

When she had the two holograms and one flesh and blood Mon Calamari in front of her she stood and began to talk.

"We are facing a growing crisis for the Resistance and by extension the galaxy, my friends. We need to discuss how we are going to navigate this situation. Kory, what is the situation in the senate?" She inquired.

Kory looked stressed and clearly dishevelled. She had the look of a hunted animal. Which given the situation on Hosnian Prime might be an accurate description.

"The situation here is becoming dangerous, General". Kory relayed with no short amount of fear in her voice.

"I have a mob outside our office block at all hours and they never stop shouting and yelling for over a day and a half. I have had no less than 26 break-in attempts and the senate guards are doing only the bear minimum to stop them. In fact, last time saw them smiling as the mob attempted to break down the door. I have received about 7 bomb deliveries and two of them exploded at the security check killing two men and damaging a number of droids.

I have been asked by the senate to attend their meetings to answer questions, but I cannot leave the office and they refuse to provide additional security. They have also captured a sniper that attempted to gain entrance to the senate district. At first they thought he might be a First Order operative, but it turned out he is a Hosnian citizen." Kory finished in a clearly frantic tone.

When she continued after a breath she almost appeared to be on the brink of collapse.

"General, I don't know how much of this me and my staff can take. We are under constant threat for our lives and we cannot leave the office without having people try to rip us apart! We cannot even address the senate in person. And when we do it by hologram we cannot get a word in before they start shouting at us demanding for us to turn ourselves in and revel our bases and informants!"

Kory's voice broke into almost a sop as she finished, and Leia felt her heartstrings tug.

Despite holding a Lieutenant rank, Kory wasn't a soldier and she never had been. She was a public servant. Her job with Leia in the senate had consisted of preparing review holos for her so the senator could recognize each delegate in attendance at official events.

She was not used to having her life constantly under threat or being trapped for fear of assassination. It took soldiers a while to develop that mental discipline.

Leia signed and turned back to the rest of this small council.

"I think we can be assured that the senate is not going to act in our favour. If they even reach a decision?" Holdo asked.

Kory composed herself before answering. "They might come to a decision as the centralist party members seem to be evacuating the planet en masse and returning to their home systems. Because of this the populists are unopposed in the senate. They might now be able to come to a decision, but they will not be favourable to the Resistance." She signed

Leia nodded as she had expected that result from the start. "We have a very limited amount of time Less than 7 hours until the deadline expires. And the New Republic we are committed to defending is currently all but calling for our immediate surrender to our enemies. What are we to do?"

Silence reigned in the room for a moment. Then Ackbar broke it.

"I think we should simply run out the clock." He said in his slightly garbled basic.

Leia, Holdo and Sella stared at him for a moment before he took the hint and elaborated.

"We naturally cannot surrender our personnel and bases to the New Republic. That would doom them personally and it would give the First Order an almost assured victory if the Resistance surrendered. But the First Order doesn't expect us to surrender. They know that we will not surrender even if the Republic demanded it. They also know that the turning over all our forces within 48 hours is an impossible task.

The sole purpose of this ultimatum is to drive a wedge between us and the New Republic senate and its citizens. To make the citizens of the Republic blame us if war breaks out and for us to be remembered as the aggressor in this conflict. It is a propaganda ploy, more than any actual military tactic.

Unfortunately, this has clearly succeeded. When the war begins we will bear the blame and it will make our war effort considerably harder. While the First Order will appear to be the wronged party and is merely acting in retaliation to provocation.

But beyond that we will have what we have been aiming for all along. The First Order will have declared war on the New Republic and the senate will be forced to respond in force. They might not accept our help at first. But as the war continues they will recognise that we share a common enemy and that we have resources and personnel that they cannot afford to ignore. And before long we will have attached what we wanted. A war against the First Order with the New Republic and the Resistance working together."

The council paused for a moment to consider. Finally, Sella spoke up. "Shouldn't we do what we can to avert war? This plan seems like we are using this ultimatum for our own ends."

Ackbar looked at her in a way that Leia's trained eye recognised as the Mon Cala's exasperated and disbelieving expression. She had seen it more and more often as the experienced Admiral was forced to work with the younger soldiers. Or the 'fry' as he called them.

"The First Order is the one that has declared this war. We are simply making the best situation of it that we can. It is the most tactically sound move that we can make."

Sella fell back into silence as she digested this verdict.

Leia nodded and rose to stand. "Contact all our forces and outposts. Tell them to recall all personnel to their home bases. We cannot take the chance of them being turned over to the First Order by the Republic, bounty hunters or enraged citizens. For the moment until the situation clarifies, we are establishing a complete recall of all active forces to our outposts and home base. Informants can remain in place, but they must maintain radio silence unless urgently required."

She then turned to Sella. "Kory, I know that you are very limited in what you are able to do given the circumstances. But for the moment do all you can to stall and hinder the senate voting on the ultimatum."

At Kory's confused expression she explained. "If the senate votes definitively to hand the Resistance over and we refuse. We would be villainised in the eyes of the people, probably beyond repair. But if the senate failed to give a clear response to the ultimatum before the time limit expires. Then we can salvage some of our reputation.

Holdo nodded. "You are telling everyone to bunker down until the war is declared and the first shots fired." She said, a statement rather then a question.

Leia nodded. "Yes, and it will allow us to concentrate our resources into finding BB-8 and the map. Right now, Luke is our only hope.

 **Starkiller Base**

 **First Order Security Bureau**

The First Order technicians worked diligently on the consoles that filled the operations room. The black clad junior officers that were expertly trained at data analyse and the compiling of information.

Each console was receiving a direct and constant feed of information from nearly every corner of the galaxy. Sourced from informants, spies, monitoring devices, drones, droids and publicly available information.

The First Order was built from the remains of the Galactic Empire. But they had survived and rebuilt and improved all that the Empire had left. And that included their secret intelligence service. And now they had eyes and ears everywhere. Almost matching the renowned skill and resources of the Imperial Security Bureau.

But right now, all Admiral Kuvira was focused on was the data console that was receiving the direct feed from Delta Source.

Even as she examined the incoming information she could not help but marvel at the brilliance of the intelligence monitor and the marvels that nature produced. Such as the ch'hala tree.

The ch'hala tree was a beautiful plant found on Cularin and was supposedly an important part of the religion of the native Tarasin. The tree's bark consisted of a pigmentation that was sensitive to pressure, including sound waves, so the tree would often change in colour and pattern in response to noise. However, it was how the trees could react to sound waves that truly made the tree's valuable.

At least to Kuvira's thinking.

Pressure on the trunk of the tree, such as pressure from sound waves or the touch of a stray hand, would set off chemical changes in the bark. And the scientists and technicians of the ISB had found a way to create a device that would allow those sound waves to be interpreted. The chemical data was interpreted into speech patterns in a module on the taproot, while another module transmitted the data.

Once the system had been perfected, it had been almost too easy to ensure that one of the modified trees was delivered to the Resistance representative's senatorial residence within the Hosnian Prime senate district. It had been sent through the most secure channels. And if the resistance had even bothered to investigate its origins. The trail would have led them to nothing more then a grateful supporter of the Resistance who happened to be a botanist on Cularin.

Not a First Order spy at all.

As an added bonus the system was organic, so it could not be picked up by most sensor sweeps. It was this that prevented Delta Source from being found for so long.

And it was this marvellous combination of technology and nature that had allowed Admiral Kuvira to listen in on the entire conversation between General Leia Organa and her little war council.

However right now she was silently cursing that during the entire meeting. Not once had the location of the Resistance home base been mentioned by name.

She had not really been surprised as never once in all the hundreds of monitored recordings with the embassy, had the planet's name been mentioned. And she was forced to conclude that it was a deliberate policy to refrain from mentioning the base location outside certain circumstances.

Still she had been hoping that given the circumstances they would have had even a momentary breach of protocol. It only took one slip of the tongue to win the war for the First Order.

If the planet had been mentioned she would have already had a fleet on the war to set that planet ablaze.

But Leia Organa had not been able to maintain the Resistance, and before that, the Rebel Alliance by being careless. Once again she was conflicted by her hatred for the woman and respect for her abilities as a worthy adversary.

Still, she had heard enough to be of use.

She turned back to the data analyst sitting in the seat that manned Dela Source's information and data feed. The poor lad looking deeply uncomfortable as he endured his vastly superior officer's scrutiny. But he relaxed when she broke the silence.

"Continue to monitor the situation and if any relevant information is received alert your watcher immediately." She ordered calmly. The analyst nodded and continued to review the data flow.

Kuvira turned and began to make her way out of the room. Already her mind was racing with the new information she had received from Delta Source and what the best ways to implement that information were.

The obvious choice would be to compel the senate to come to a confirmed verdict to surrender the Resistance and to demand that all members of the terrorist organisation surrendered themselves to either their custody or the custody of the First Order.

That way the blame for the start of the war would be unquestionable. Much as the Resistance feared they would be.

However, that plan of action would be problematic as the centralists had been given clear orders to evacuate the planet. Already the vast majority of them had withdrawn to their home worlds to prepare to the mass desertion to the First Order.

Publicly they had announced that they were determined to not get their worlds dragged into a war caused by the Resistance's terrorism. And that they were making it clear that they were distancing themselves from the Republic in the face of First Order retaliation.

Unfortunately, it also severely reduced their influence in the senate. And with the Resistance trying to (ironically) stall the senate in this case. She was not certain she could enforce a confirmed verdict in their favour.

But with less than 5 hours to go until the ultimatum ran out it was likely the senate would panic and be forced to make a verdict. But even if they did not the result would be the same.

As she made her way to the door she heard her rank and name being called by the intelligence division watcher.

"Admiral, we have received a report from one of our operatives on Takodana." The senior intelligence watcher reported. Despite the years of training and discipline working in the First Order's intelligence service. She could see that he was practically bouncing on the balls of his feet as he prepared to deliver the news.

Whatever it was.

She waited but he did not continue. He seemed to be waiting for her to actually ask him for the information. She tried not to roll her eyes at the childish behaviour.

"Well do you intend to keep me in suspense Watcher?" She said bitingly. She expected the tone to snap the watcher back to his senses. But remained in a borderline chortling state.

Whatever this news was must be important.

"The droid, and the traitor have been sighted on Takodana, within castle Maz in the company of the Jakku desert dweller, the Wookie Chewbacca and Han Solo, Admiral." He said all in one breath

Kuvira stiffened and immediately ran the situations through her mind.

Takodana was a planet located in the Mid Rim, though it fell in the southwestern region of the galaxy known as the Western Reaches.

Covered in lush forests and small lakes. Takodana was located on a hyperspace route between Chalcedon and Noe'ha'on and was a popular departure point that offered easy access to trade routes that connected the Inner and Outer Rim.

Takodana was also known as the long-time home of Maz Kanata's castle that served as an open port to spies and dubious travellers alike. Travelers found the planet's neutrality and distance from galactic politics appealing, and as a result Takodana became a haven for fugitives, smugglers, and explorers.

Or degenerate scum as Kuvira thought of them.

But if the droid was there then they had to act fast. It would not be long before the Resistance knew of the droid's location. If they did not know already.

After all, Maz Kanata. The freaky little semi-immortal gnome that claimed the castle was a known ally of Han Solo and thereby Leia and the Resistance. If she saw the droid, she would not take long to realise what it was and what it carried.

She tried and failed to stop her lip curling into a small snarl. If that bloody troll, prevented them from getting the droid first. She would personally wring the life from her stubby body.

Turning she marched from the surveillance room and activated her personal comm as she marched down the corridor. She wanted to run as time was of the essence. But she could not afford to have her subordinates see her in anything that might be interpreted as a panicked state.

She activated her comm and brought up the direct line she had to the _Finalizer's_ captain Peavey.

"Captain Peavey is Lord Ren back aboard the _Finalizer_?" She asked with clear tone that had no time for questions.

But credit where it was due. Captain Peavey did not let the sudden question phase him or hinder his duty. "Yes Admiral, he arrived just recently and is currently in his chambers. He left orders not to be disturbed as he was meditating I believe."

At least, that is what he thought that melted relic of a mask was for anyway.

Kuvira nodded. "Excellent, tell him I want to speak to him immediately. Then I want the Finalizer prepped for travel to Takodana. But do not depart yet. We have just five hours until the ultimatum runs out. And that will be just enough time to prepare our opening salvo."

She paused for a second and then continued.

"Also contact Hux and tell him I want him to make himself presentable." She said.

While she internally muttered 'As only that preening peacock can.'

Finally, she activated her comm for a third time and keyed it to the command centre of Starkiller base.

"Starkiller Operational Control. This is Admiral Kuvira, authorization code: C-2-1-8-Black. Call all troops to assembly in four hours. And…."

She paused for moment as the gravity of what she was about to do took hold on her.

"Begin weapon charging and prepare to fire."

 **Takodana**

 **Maz's Castle**

As the three humans, Wookie and droid moved to join the small orange alien at a separate table within the castle cantina. None of them noticed a battered relic of a droid study them briefly before sending out a coded message.

"Alert the Resistance, their missing droid is here."


	10. Chapter 10 - First Blood

**Sorry for the delay. Life was hectic and this chapter was surprisingly hard to write. Next chapter will focus on the battle at Takodana**

 **Chapter 10 – First blood drawn**

 **Takodana – Maz's castl** **e**

 **Rey - POV**

Rey sat on her chair by the table with Finn and Han that the small orange creature that Han had called Maz, had set aside for them when they had entered her castle. She did not know much about the galaxy outside of Jakku or what the few traders and off-worlders that visited Jakku had told her. But she could clearly see that Maz was a 'woman' of means. Which probably made her a good friend to have when you were being chased by a very powerful galactic force like the First Order.

Maz is putting together some food as she says "A map to Skywalker himself? You're right back in the mess." She directed at Han in a clearly pleased tone of voice. Han in turn, only gave a slight grimace before he responded.

"Maz, I need you to get this droid to Leia." He said while he rapped BB-8 on his dome for emphasis causing the droid to chirp indignantly.

Maz shook her head and seemed to sign with impatience in her strangely jovial way. "Hmm. No. You've been running away from this fight for too long. Han, nyakee nago wadda. Go home!" She said with a defiant note of exasperation. Rey was still trying to figure out what she had said in that strange language. Whatever it was it sounded like a mild insult.

"Leia doesn't want to see me." Han said with a tone that conveyed finality, but Rey was not so naïve that she could not detect a definite note of regret. She wondered what the story was behind the conversation these two were having. Although she had guessed that it had something to do with an old flame of Han's, this Leia person.

She had heard the stories, or more like legends of Han Solo and the rest of the heroes of the rebellion. She had heard that Han had married his fellow hero Leia Organa, who was supposedly a princess and now a general in the Resistance. It sounded so fantastical that it was had to separate what was fact and what was embellished story telling. But she guessed this was prove enough that the relationship part of the story was true. But from what she was hearing it had not had the fairy tale happy ending that many such stories were supposed to have.

But it seemed Finn cared less about Han's romantic past. "Please, we came here for your help." He said desperately. But Rey had other questions. "What fight?" She asked.

Maz turned to face her and adjusted the eye glass headgear that she wore so her enlarged eyes focused on Rey with a level of study that made Rey feel like she was naked.

"The only fight" Maz whispered with a conspiratorial tone of voice. "Against the dark side. Through the ages, I've seen evil take many forms. The Sith. The Empire. Today, it is the First Order. Their shadow is spreading across the galaxy quickly, behind the impetus of that Admiral of theirs. We must face them. Fight them. All of us."

Rey was startled and a little bit in awe of Maz's brief speech. But it was clear that Finn was much less impressed. "There is no fight against the First Order! Not one we can win. Admiral Kuvira has never been defeated in battle or in war and Kylo Ren can take down an army by himself. They have millions of soldiers and unmatched resources. The First Order fleet is massive, and its spy network, the FOSB is everywhere. Look around. There's no chance we haven't been recognized already. I bet you the First Order is on their way right—"

Finn stops and Rey who at the time was wondering why a Resistance fighter like Finn would be so reluctant to fight the First Order (I mean was that not the entire point of the Resistance?) turned to see what has stopped him cold. Rey saw Maz adjusting her goggles yet again, scrutinizing Finn with her eyes that grew to even larger sizes.

Finn quickly seemed to grow uncomfortable under her piercing stare. Rey understood the feeling having just been under it herself. "What's this? What are you doing?" He demanded in a defensive voice.

Maz adjusts the goggles again. Her eyes get impossibly bigger. She grunts in recognition as she hoists herself on the table top, knocking over food and plates, crawling towards Finn. Completely unconcerned with the mess she was making of her dining area.

Finn backed away as much as he was able to before turning to Han for some kind of support. "Solo, what is she doing?" He squeaked. Han just shrugged with a look that said he intended to keep his distance from this situation. "I don't know, but it ain't good." He muttered.

Maz finally came to a stop right in front of Finn and set her eyes directly on level with his. To Finn it was as if the world had turned entirely black with him only able to see the rest of it at the edge of his vision. "If you live long enough you see the same eyes in different people. I'm looking at the eyes of a man who wants to run." Maz said with the kind of certainty that you could say it will be hot on Jakku tomorrow.

Finn was taken aback by her blunt accusation. But it quickly gave way to defensive anger. He leaned in closer to Maz so he could try and give her an uncomfortable stare "You don't know a thing about me. Where I'm from. What I've seen. You don't know the First Order like I do. They'll slaughter us. They have millions of soldiers and billions of credits at their disposal. Trying to fight them is like trying to fight a hurricane. We all need to run."

Rey is stunned at Finn's words but Maz, not so much. She crawls back to her chair where she points to some pirates in the corner. "You see those two? They'll trade work for transportation to the Outer Rim. There, you can disappear."

Finn looks at her incredulously. "The Outer Rim?! The First Order rules almost the entire Outer Rim. I want to get away from them and you send me right into the jaws of death?!" He hissed in anger.

Maz just shrugged. "It is the only choice you have. No one else will make room for you on their ship and you have no money to pay for passage. It is them, or you stay her and join the struggle." She said in a completely unconcerned manner.

At that piece of reality Finn turns back to study the pirates, considering.

"Finn!" Rey hissed trying to snap him out of whatever emotional breakdown has caused him to consider abandoning his friends in the Resistance. And he does snap him out of it as he turns to face her. But it does not gain the change that she had been hoping for.

"Come with me." He said with a desperation that bordered on manic. She was starting to think he had had lost his mind along with his priorities. But she tried again to make him remember where his duties lay.

"What about BB-8? We're not done yet. We have to get him back to your base." She insists

But Finn is already rising to his feet when he responds. "I can't." He mutter's as he turns away from the table before he pauses and turns back. He pulls out his gun and offers it back to Han. But the smuggler waves it off and pushes the weapon back to him.

"Keep it, kid." He says softly.

Finn nods his thanks and heads off. Rey gets up to follow while Maz dials her lenses back to normal and turns to Han. "Who's the girl?" She asks as Han simply shrugs before he begins to explain

 **Finn - POV**

Meanwhile Finn had arrived at the pirate's table and wasted no time in getting to the heart of the matter he wanted to discuss. "I was told you could get me to the Outer Rim." But before he could get any further Rey bust into the conversation and pulled his attention away from the two pirates who would hopefully be his unlikely life line.

"What are you doing?" She demanded, and he turned back to the pirate that had a head the size of BB-8'S body. "Don't leave without me." He stated flatly. And he got up from the table to speak to Rey in a part of the cantina that might give them some form of privacy. He did not need to wait long before she immediately asked her question.

"You can't just go. I won't let you." She said with a level of finality that almost hid the desperation and confusion beneath it. Almost.

But Fin was tired of playing this game and he no longer needed the cover in order to stay alive. Well Rey or Han might shoot him upon discovering his true origins. But he felt that he could be reasonably sure that they would not do that. At least not within a crowded cantina full of weapon happy pirates and smugglers. If he was wrong. Well, he would be dead before he realised.

"I'm not who you think I am." He said simply and left Rey to gain a confused expression on her face. Before she asked the question he knew was coming. "Finn, what are you talking about?" She asked and before he knew it the flood gates were open, and he was revealing everything.

"I'm not Resistance. I'm not a hero. I'm a Stormtrooper. Like all of them, I was taken from a family I'll never know. And raised to do one thing..." He said and as he spoke emotions and long buried thoughts that he had never consciously acknowledged. "But in my first battle, I made a choice. I wasn't going to kill for them. So, I ran."

As he spoke Rey's face turned from confused to surprised, to anguished and finally to a stony resolve. But he kept pressing on his abrupt confession. "Right into you. And you looked at me like no one ever had. I was ashamed of what I was. But I'm done with the First Order. I'm never going back. Rey, come with me." He pleaded. He was very aware of how desperate he sounded but he didn't care.

He had already lost every friend he had ever known due to his betrayal of the First Order. He did not want to be alone all over again. If he could somehow persuade Rey to join him in the Outer Rim, at least he would have that. He might not have known her very long, but they had been in more life and death situations then most people had been in their entire lives. That forged a bond between people that was formed at a speed that superseded logic and time.

He wanted her to say yes so desperately. But as he looks int other resolute face he knows that the answer she is about to give is not going to be the one that he wants to hear.

"Don't go." Rey whispers. And Fin feels his shoulders sag in disappointment.

He does not want to let her down and he does want to keep her safe like she had kept him safe. Or at least as safe as she could in these screwed up situation they found themselves in. But in the end she wants to finish Poe's mission for him. He doesn't understand why. As far as he knew she had never left Jakku. The Resistance and New Republic. The First Order and the Empire. The Jedi and the Sith. They should all just be random words to her, without meaning or ties.

But since he as met her she has been determined to fight and quite possibly die for the Resistance. Even though she has never met a real member of the Resistance. In fact, he is not even sure she really knows what they are fight for or what the First Order fights for. He supposes it boils down to BB-8 is her friend and in the Resistance. And the First Order was the one shooting at her in Jakku. Which he supposes makes as good a reason as any to get involved in a galactic war.

He is not entirely sure what her motivations are. But he knows that whatever they are they will not hold up against the might of the First Order. Even less so if Kuvira, Kylo Ren or Phasma get their hands on her. And however much he likes her. Staying with the droid and the Resistance is suicide. And he doesn't like anyone that much.

"Take care of yourself. Please." He says to her as a parting gesture. Then he turns back round to the pair of pirates who will hopefully get in the hell out of here.

Rey looks at him go with her hopes crushed and then with quiet resignation and she watches Finn return to the aliens. And then watch as all three head off to the front door and walk through it.

She begins to head back to Han's table. When she stops dead and turns to a doorway across the room. The sign on the door reads as 'lower level'. It should be completely uninteresting.

But for reasons Rey cannot even begin to explain. She begins to move across the room and down the stairs that she finds go down into the depths of the castle. She was only aware that she was being drawn irresistibly along by some unknown force.

 **Starkiller Base**

 **Kuvira – POV**

A thousand or so stormtroopers and their officers stand fronted and assembled, with amassed TIE fighters and other machines of war or maintenance positioned in formation all around them. All around them rose the massive constructs of Starkiller base. The sheer size of the edifice of many made construction made even more apparent by the knowledge that it was just a tiny piece of the planet spanning super construct.

Admiral Kuvira stood on the officer's podium overlooking the assembled ranks the planet into the horizon. She stood in pride of place with the other senior officers and their most high-ranking subordinates. Behind them was a massive red and black banner fluttering gently in the mild breeze. The symbol of the First Order emblazoned proudly on the material as it boasted its power and pride across the assembled masses.

She was dressed in her full black uniform and black greatcoat, hat and gloves. She was in her standard posture. Feet set apart and her left hand hanging by her side (by her side arm pistol) and her right arm behind her back resting along the curve of her spine. He black uniform shined in the sun light and the fabric was cleaned and ordered to perfection. While she sneered at the preening habits of vain people. She admitted that some occasions were worth just that extra bit of effort to impress. And this situation certainly qualified.

Today would see the death of the corrupt and dying Republic. And the restoration of what the rebels had almost destroyed. The dream of a united and properly ordered galaxy would now become a reality. And they were standing on the very threshold of that moment. With the greatest weapon the galaxy had ever seen at their command.

Even though it could not be seen beyond the tree line. She knew that the firing chamber for the weapon, roughly the size of a decent continent, was directly ahead of her. Ready to unleash its unfathomable power into the galaxy.

All around the bases layout and constructs were the white snow-capped peaks of the planet that shield the assembled force from the biting arctic winds that whipped around them and blew the frigid snows across the forests and plans.

Of course, Kuvira mused. If the troops had been required to stand at parade formation for hours in the snow while the winds slowly buried them in it, they would do so. And she would have been right their beside them until the snow covered her head. She was a firm believer in the philosophy that a true leader does not ask their troops to do what she was unwilling to do. It was a hanger on from her own days as a simple private.

But such drastic measures were not requiring today. However, as she was forced to listen to General Hux's incessant rambling. She was starting to wonder if it might have been more of a mercy then having her soldiers listen to the narcissistic maniac.

And even though she was recognised as the highest-ranking officer on this entire planet. She was standing to the side while her companion continued to perform to her exact specification like a trained monkey-lizard.

Still she had to admit that everyone had their uses. And one of Hux's very limited uses was the delivery of fiery rhetoric. Even as she listened to the man and continued to loath his very existence in her otherwise perfect military. She had to admit that he was able to inflame the passions of her people and even herself for the war effort.

Such a skill could have made Hux a truly dangerous opponent to her within the First Order. However, thanks to his complete lack of military skill or social conduct with his fellow officers. He never realised that a man with allies or friends (though she preferred the latter as friendships complicated things) could never seize, much less hold power. His fellow officers despised Hux and they recognised him for what he was. He remained a mentally unstable man-child with no real power beyond what Kuvira and the Supreme Leader granted him.

The officers of the old guard saw him the way they used to see Kuvira. As an underserving upstart who did not deserve his rank. However, while Kuvira have proven them wrong and earned their loyalty, or at least their obedience. Hux had never made the attempt. And now when the time came to get rid of him. He would have almost no supporters to worry about.

She shelved her personal recriminations an came back to the speech as Hux started to come to the point of this assembly. However, she kept her eye on the krono display on her wrist as the time for the ultimatum started to reach complete zero.

Her remaining informants in the senate. Mostly droids and Delta source itself had confirmed that the Resistance was stonewalling the New Republic senate as much as possible. In a desperate attempt to prevent the Republic from making the smart move and surrendering the Resistance. They were calling out and referencing every scrap of legal; loopholes and bureaucratic law that they could get their hands on to delay the senate.

She knew that it was part of a strategy to minimise opinion reaction when the war broke out. Still it disgusted her how easy it was for them to ham string a galactic government into not making an obvious decision through bureaucrats and their ilk. So, the New Republic doomed itself, just like its predecessor.

Still, it made no difference to the overall result. The Resistance could try and play for deniability all they wanted but it would not matter. When the war started when the ultimatum ran out in less than 15 galactic minutes. The galaxy would have no doubt who was the match that lit the tibanna gas. And when the dust settled, they would have a galaxy that either had willingly fought against them or blamed them for their recent woes and loses to the war.

After all no war, however short it was, came without casualties. And she intended to make sure that despite the Resistance' desperate hopes to the contrary. That there was plenty of blame to go around.

She pulled herself out of her musings to listen to Hux's megalomaniacal drivel that continued to be inflicted on the troops. Enhanced by artfully concealed amplification equipment, his voice boomed out across the throng of military personnel and well into the horizon of the planet.

 _Today is the end of the Republic. The end of a government incapacitated by corruption. The end of an illegitimate regime that acquiesces to disorder! At this very moment, in a system far from here the New Republic lives and wheezes. Staggering onward. Depraved and ineffectual. And unable in anyway to support the citizenry it claims to serve. Meanwhile, a host of systems are left to wither and die. Without aid, without care, without hope. Drowning in its own decadence the New Republic ignores them and in so doing lies to the galaxy while secretly supporting the treachery of the loathsome Resistance. All the while, they remain unaware that these are its final moments._

He swept his hand sharply downward. It might seem an unimportant gesture but Kuvira saw (as Hux did) the strength on physical action to further emphasise powerful words. And Hux was in his element. Mentioning all the flaws of the Republic that Kuvira so despised. By the law of averages. Hux had to eventually say something that she agreed with.

 _This fierce machine which you have built, to which you have dedicated your lives and labour. And upon which we now stand, will bring a final end to the worthless Senate! To its dithering members and to their cherished fleet! When this day is done! All remaining systems will bow to the First Order! And all will remember this... as the last day of the last Republic!_

As voice carried away the final shout of his speech. As one all the soldiers of the assembly raised their arms and fists in a universal salute. Kuvira actually felt herself tear up a little at the sight, though she quickly blinked it away. The sheer discipline and perfection of that one movement was enough to make her so proud of her soldiers and their entire Order.

She even gave a small nod in Hux's direction as he turned to briefly face her. She and Hux may hate each other, but that speech was masterfully done. And she was not so petty that she could not acknowledge a good job when she saw it.

She reached into her coat pocket and subtly pressed the small device she had in the pocket. The device was no bigger then a simple commlink. But it was of vital importance. It was even now sending of the signal directly to Hosnian Prime. The signal would beam directly to the embassy of the First Order to the New Republic. From there the signal would be bounced through relays set up by the FOSB across the planet and the holonet. It would also be made to forcibly appear within the senate chamber and across the local news feed.

The feed would play a pre-recorded holo of her and her announcement that the deadline for the ultimatum had been expired and that war was now official. Some of her comrades had critiqued this part of the plan. They claimed that even if it was timed right to the point when the weapon fired it was an unnecessary gesture that could allow some of the New Republic infrastructure to escape the planet. Some even assumed she as issuing a formal declaration of war out of a sense of 'fairness'.

She would laugh at the idea if it wasn't borderline insulting.

She had no interest in conducting a fair war. Truly the whole concept of 'rules of engagement' were ludicrous to her thinking. Rules were for children's games. She was interested in winning the war. And she would do everything and anything she deemed necessary to accomplish that goal. Be it pre-emptive strikes, biological warfare, torture of prisoners, killing civilians and the destruction of planets.

Naturally she would rather not resort to such measures. She preferred being reasonable whenever possible. But if she deemed it necessary she would do it with no question. Afterall she was fighting to conquer the galaxy, not destroy it. That was something Palpatine had never valued. And it was why she would succeed where he failed.

She was giving the New Republic a head's up so that with an official declaration of war the almost instantaneous strike on Hosnian Prime would be an official act of war rather then be classified as a pre-emptive strike. Also, it would give her one final chance to lay the blame at the Resistance's feet.

Once again it was hearts and minds that would win this fight. In truth the act of star ships and soldiers blasting away at each other with blasters and turbo lasers was a side show in this conflict. But so often did the flashy aspects blind people to the subtle ones.

She turned her mind back to the events in front of her as she felt the planet begin to rumble and shake ever so slightly as the weapon firing sequence reached its end. Ironically, just like the life of the New Republic

"FIRE!"

And Hux turns to give the signal, while as one all the assembled troops turn away to face the horizon. The rally ground was completely silent.

For a moment, nothing. Then during an eerily silent moment, an impossible blast of fire light. Similar to nuclear fire erupts from the surface of the planet and shot into the sky. The light was so bright that Kuvira and the rest of the officers had to look away and shield their eyes. Even the stormtroopers with their protective helmets were forced to raise their hands to ward of the glare.

Seconds later, a terrible explosive roar bursts out of the flame embroiled horizon that forced the Admiral and her fellows back a few steps. Nephitina who had been standing just to the left and behind her was actually thrown from her feet to land in a pile, with her lekku draped over her head. And she was hardly alone in that regard.

Having been gathered and held within the power of the superstructure and aided by the magnetic field of the planet the unfathomable amount of dark energy, known as 'quintessence', was suddenly unleashed into the galaxy.

There was nothing like it. Nothing natural like it in the entire known galaxy. Directed through the continent sized firing barrel. At incredible force and speed, the quintessence punching through the barrier of regular and hyperspace and entering the state known as phantom energy.

Based on the data from hundreds of schematics and data analyse. The unequalled blast of energy would continue to travel along a linier path until it left the galactic disk and entered the dark void between galaxies.

Or…..until it met something in its path. That was of sufficient mass, to intercept it.

Kuvira, turned away and keyed her commlink.

"Order all fleets to proceed as planned. And prepare the _Reclaimer_ to head to Takodana. Have my starfighter ready for deployment." She said stiffly.

"At once, Admiral"

 **Hosnian Prime**

 **Korr Sella - POV**

Kory sat with her head in her hands as she listened to the senate continue to argue and shout and insult and threaten each other as they had been doing for hours on end. In the past she might have been worried about projecting such obvious despair and weakness to the senate as the Resistance representative.

But lately she felt that she simply did not care anymore.

The Supreme Chancellor was helpless to bring order to the Chaos. And even muting the senate podium speakers did nothing as the senators just yelled even harder. This senate wasn't worth the dirt on her boots and it had been made abundantly clear that they would never stand up to the First Order with the Resistance. Since that was her whole purpose for being here she felt that she should simply leave them to their petty arguments.

It was moments like this when she thought that maybe the First Order's plan to spike every senator in the galaxy, was not half bad.

She would have asked Leia for permission to leave the planet and return to D'Qar. At least then she might be able to do some good in this fight. But she knew she could not leave just yet. The plan to stall the senate until the ultimatum ran out was not her favourite plan. It struck her as dishonourable and a betrayal of their peaceful ideals. But it was one that she had carried out well. Not that she needed much effort, to make the senate as disorganised as possible. They pretty much do that themselves.

The ultimatum was going to expire any minute. Hell, it might have already expired for all she knew. And once that was done and all the games of pretending ended. She could head back to D'Qar and see where she would be sent to for the war. She was not a fighter, but she could still help them rally allies to their cause.

Although she admitted that after this whole political mess, it would be a lot harder.

Just as she was about to start massaging her temples to relieve some of the tension headache. She heard the distinctive sound of the senate main holoprojector activating. She looked up at the control console, but it was empty.

Somehow the projector had activated itself.

She turned to the section where the First Order's Ambassador Tann would normally be sitting with her armed white goons. But the Ambassador had been recalled a few hours after the ultimatum had been delivered. Still Korr could not shake the feeling that this was because of them.

Her suspicion proved true when the projection came into focus, and Admiral Kuvira once again stood before the senate in larger than life size.

The entire senate fell universally silent and for a brief moment Korr was glad for the Admiral's appearance for that if nothing else.

But she had a feeling that she and the entire senate knew the reason for this call. And she saw a large number for senators beginning to turn pale. (Or whatever colour their species equivalent was)

Kuvira's hologram remained silent for what felt like an agonisingly long time. Then she inhaled audible and the entire senate tensed. Once again Korr both admired and cursed Kuvira's ability to play to a crowd. Then she began to speak.

And the tone and the words.

Were damning.

" _48 hours. I with the benevolent understanding of Supreme Leader Snoke. Gave you 48 hours to make a single, simple and rational decision. A decision that I would trust a child to make. Turn over those among your government and territories that have proven to be violent terrorists. Those who have pushed our peoples to this point through their actions. Or face the prospect of a galaxy wide war."_

The Admiral paused, and her eyes were almost burning with contempt.

" _And what do you do with this precious time? You squabble and picker. And hurl insults at each other in a manner fit only for infants. You descend upon each other like a pack of firaxan sharks. All the while leaving the issue unresolved and putting the lives of all you claim to represent at the greatest of risk."_

" _48 hours we gave you. While we waited and prayed and hoped you would see reason. And while we prepared in case you refused to do so. And now, the time allotted to you is done. And so, our hand is forced."_

" _You had your chance."_ Kuvira finished as her hologram faded away.

For a moment the senate was in complete silence as they realised that they were now officially at war. Then the Chaos returned greater then ever. Korr saw with additional hopelessness, that not even a confirmed common enemy could unite the fractious senate together.

Korr stood up and began to make her way to the senate entrance way. Her job was done. And the war was about to begin. Now she needed to get to then place where she could prove the most useful.

It was as she was about to pass through the archway that she noticed that the light pollution generated by Hosnian Prime's capital city against the night sky, seemed to be increasing. Frowning she turned and looked out of the window at the night sky.

She along with a rabidly growing number of other people gazed at the strange phenomenon. Some asking question about what it was caused by.

Quickly. Far to quickly for anything even remotely ordinary. The sky began to not only grow lighter. But to actually glow intensely. It was as if a small sun had suddenly appeared from out of nowhere. And that sun was heading right for the world that she happened to be standing on.

In the next instant, just as her face began to gain a look of horrified realisation. The 'thing; struck the planet with enough force that the crust was penetrated, and the mantle was ruptured. It was as if a comet had struck the planet. But Korr had a sense that what they were experiencing was even worse.

In the next instant…. the core ignited, and the planet was turned into (what could be scientifically described as) a pocket Nova.

Korr Sella never knew what had happened and what exactly was going to happen. But she knew enough to understands that this was it. That there was no hope for her or any other lifeform that had the horrible fate to be on this planet at this moment.

She knew in that moment that the First Order had played them. They had never been preparing for a conventional war to begin. They had used their ultimatum to ensure that the senate and the New Republic fleet was amassed at the capital. And the sudden en masse departure of the centralists suddenly made so much more sense.

If Korr had the time for such reactions, she would have cried.

Every man, woman and child on Hosnian Prime was going to die. The senate was going to be destroyed. The government would be decapitated. The New Republic Home Fleet would be wiped out in one shot. The centralists would hand half the galaxy over to the First Order. The other half would be too paralysed with fear to even consider resisting. And the Resistance would now be standing alone against the Titan that was the First Order.

But even as she felt the fear and rage and sorrow and despair all well up inside her. She took a small amount of comfort in the knowledge that though her life had been short. She had done something with it. She had been handed a small insignificant life and she had used it in the service of her idol General Leia Organa and the cause of the Resistance.

Kory felt no small amount of pride in that knowledge. And while it was not enough to push away the overwhelming horror of what she was experiencing and the terror of what she was going to experience any millisecond. It offered her a small amount of comfort in her final moment.

Then, the crust shattered into pieces and Korr Sella, Resistance member and ambassador to Leia Organa in the New Republic senate, knew nothing more.

The explosion continued to expand outward and tore through the fleet that had been gathered over the doomed planet. The heat, and debris and sheer force, cut through the shield and armour plating as if they were not even there. Before the crews could even realise what was happening. Their ships, their fleet and their mortal bodies became dust in the solar winds.

All the world of the entire Hosnian system were instantly scorched clean of life and any remaining evidence that any form of civilisation had ever existed in this part of the galaxy. In its place was a blazing mass of energy and matter. Before finally, that too faded away.

Leaving nothing, but a black empty void.


	11. Chapter 11 - Battle of Takodana: Part 1

**edboy4926: Thanks, as always for the review. It helps to get the desire to update going. As to your question about Gundam UC Zeon. I have never watched that show. I watched some of the original (I think) Gundam Wing years ago but not since then. I got the idea for the sudden attack from the original intent of the Japanese on Peral Harbour. The attack was meant to take place a few moments after the Japanese ambassador formally presented the declaration of war. It did not turn out as planned but it shows the subtle line between pre-emptive strike and an official act of war. I figured this is a tactic that Kuvira would use for both its military advantage and lessening harm to the propaganda image she is so determined to keep up for the galaxies people.**

 **Guest007: Thanks for the review it made me chuckle with how passionate it was. As to your question of how will this work? Will the canon be held to or will the First Order win? I am trying to tell the story how I honestly think it would be with a capable commander like Kuvira in charge. This admittedly does make it hard sometimes as at many moments in the TFA and TLJ, the heroes only survive due to Hux's idiocy or protagonist powers. So, it will be a challenge to keep the story going (the heroes not dying immediately) while keeping Kuvira's leadership qualities as good as they are. Any way I hope I don't disappoint you and I welcome any ideas.**

 **Guest: Thanks for the review. I will try to keep you entertained**

 **Miss Luny: Thanks for your review. Yeah I rewrote that part quite a few times. I mean how do you accurately describe the emotions and situation of something like that. I think we can all agree that seeing that moment in the cinema was a moment of just 'What the Hell just happened?' mind overload. Still I am glad that you liked how I portrayed it in the end.**

 **TishaLiz: Thanks for the review. They are always appreciated as is any feedback.**

 **AlwaysChillin98: I am glad that you like seeing things from multiple people's points of view. That is one thing I have always loved in fanfics. And in a way that is the point of the story. Seeing things from the 'bad guys' point of view. As Obi Wan makes it clear. Our perceptions of good and evil depend on our POV. The 'villain' always believes they are the hero. And since I support the Empire and First Order anyway. I want their side to be told as well as I can. While still giving the 'heroes' their moment as well.**

 **Kksambo: Thanks very much for the review. Like you I have always found the rebels to be very short-sighted and very self-righteous with their actions. If they blow up a factory filled with Imperial workers. Its for the good of the galaxy. But if the Empire does that to a rebel factory it is tyranny?! I have always hated how the Star Wars world is so one-sided. With all the perspectives being from the Jedi and Rebels side. The point of this story is to try an add some balance to the mix. Also like you I have my problems with Rey. As I said last chapter. She should have no loyalty or connections to the Resistance and yet she seems to automatically want to join them? Also, her life on Jakku should not have made her a 'Mary Sue' like you said. So, I am going to try and flesh her out some more and make her more realistic to her background. She and Kuvira will have a meeting face to face very soon.**

 **Random Reader: Thanks for your support. Takodana is this chapter so I hope it lives up to your expectations.**

 **Chapter 11 – Battle of Takodana. Part 1**

 **Takodana – Maz's Castle Courtyard**

 **Han – POV**

A crowd of onlooker's files out from inside Maz's castle as they turn all eyes on the red stars that have appeared in the sky and the flashes of light that match nothing that even the widest travelled spacer has ever seen before. Desperate to identify the strange phenomenon, they chatter in dozens of different languages and dialects. But even to a person who could not understand a single word. It would have been obvious that they were exclaiming in fear and horror.

And Han was very well versed in all the languages that they were using from his days as a smuggler. But even with all the strange stuff he had seen in his life he could not fathom what he was seeing in the sky above Takodana. It looked like a new star had been born in the galaxy. Or an existing star had gone nova.

That might have explained the sight if there were not four other smaller red lights in the sky clustered around the main one. The idea of four stars going nova at once all in one place was next to impossible. And that fact that Han had an incredibly bad feeling about this did not help his state of mind. He had always trusted that bad feeling and his instincts had never steered him wrong.

The fact that it was emanating from the general direction of Hosnian Prime also did not make his mind anymore at ease. He was a smuggler and a smuggler who wanted to live needed to know the galaxy hyperplanes and navigation maps as if they were tattooed on the inside of their eyelids. Years of study and practice had allowed him to trace roughly where most planets were in the galaxy even if he was standing on another planet in the middle of broad daylight. That was how he knew that those lights had come from the sector that housed the New Republic capital.

That could not be good.

Beside him Chewie was clearly think the same thing as he softly growled and stared up at the sky as well.

"It was the Republic!" Han and Chewie turn as Finn arrives, moving quickly through the crowd. He makes his way over to them quickly all while looking up to the sky. "The First Order, they've done it." He says as if he can't quite believe it.

In truth he couldn't.

He knew what the Starkiller project was meant to do. Even an idiot could take one look at it and know what it was meant to do. And he had been stationed on the planet for almost a year while on the janitorial detail. He and everyone else who was assigned to that base were given a briefing of the planet weapons purpose and the strict classification of information relating to it.

It was made clear that breaching this classified information to fellows within the First Order would result in severe punishment and demotion. Sharing the information with anyone outside of the First Order was automatically meat with the death sentence.

He had known all that time that the High Command was not pouring all these unfathomable resources into the weapon project without intending it to be used at some point. But the sheer scope of the weapon and the projections of what it was supposed to do made it seem more like a fantasy then a reality. In his private thoughts, he had never seriously considered that the weapon would actually work. Or that they would actually use it,.

But clearly it did, and they had.

The sheer realisation of the loss of life that had just happened was enough to make his mind shutdown to auto-pilot. He didn't even really remember heading back to the castle until he was standing next to Han and Chewie. Only when he noticed a missing member of his former party did his mind seem to snap back into place.

"Where's Rey?" He asked.

 **Rey – POV**

Rey races through the forest and finally comes to a stop, overwhelmed and exhausted. At an emotional breaking point, she has no idea where to go, who to turn to. Then she hears a beep and turns to see BB-8, catching up with her.

She did not realise that he was following her. To be honest she had not even paid attention to where she was going. She had just wanted to get away from that castle, away from that basement and above all, away from that lightsabre.

The vision that she had was so pronounce and so vivid. It was as if she had actually experienced those moments herself this very day. Then when she had come out of that vision and had seen Maz holding out the lightsaber too her she had not known what to do or what was going on. Then when Maz had piled on with the sudden preaching about how her future lay with these 'Jedi' and Luke Skywalker. She had had enough and ran.

But what really made her run was Maz's blunt comment the future and people she was waiting for on Jakku, were never coming back. The moment when Maz claimed that Rey already knew that they were not coming back for her.

She could not take that. It was all too much. So, she had runaway. She had run away from the swirl of the thoughts, doubts, wants, questions and excuses. She had wanted to get back to Jakku, where everything was simple. Where her concerns had been simply finding enough salvage to sell and make it through another day. Another day which could be the one when her parents came back for her. Like she knew they would.

Instead she was being forced to confront all of these things that she could not understand or comprehend. The fact that Finn had lied to her all this time. The fact that BB-8 held some galaxy changing information. The talk about this 'only' war between light and darkness, Jedi and Sith. And now the vision with the lightsaber and the 'presence' that she could now feel within her.

It was overwhelming

So now she had done as any frightened child would do. She had run away and hid. Determined to get back to the one place that felt familiar and that made sense to her. Jakku.

That was how she now found herself in the woods a distance away from Maz's castle. With the droid that was the starting point for all her problems lately following her chipping concernedly.

"What are you doing? You have to go back." She commands in a tone that allows no debate. But the droid seems to not notice that and continues to beep at her rabidly with questions and platitudes. She shakes her had and steps toward the droid for emphasis.

"BB-8. No, you can't. You have to go back, you're too important. They'll help you." She pleads before she suddenly breaks off due to an earth-shattering noise. A noise that sounded like an explosion.

Then, another sound, louder now, and it causes both of them to look up. Though the tree line she sees dozens of First Order TIE fighters flying in formation across the sky. Their iconic howling noise echoing through the tree's and sending birds flying in fright.

Between the fighters appear to be bulky ships that she can only assume our troop transports and they are all heading directly to the lake where the castle is located. Rey's heart sinks as she realises that her friends are in danger!

With that thought racing through her mind she runs back towards the castle with BB-8 rolling along behind her.

Eventually she breaks though the tree line and watches in growing horror as the battle unfolds in front of her. Although battle is a generous term. 'Target practice' would be more appropriate.

The First Order TIE's where flying around the castle like a swarm of pelko bugs as they sent blast after blast of green energy into the stone structure of the castle causing fires to burn and for the castles foundations to be shaken to the ground. Even as she watches, one of the fighter's blasts one of the castles towers and the explosion causes the tower spire break off and come crashing down on the building and eventually the rubble collided with Maz's statue, shattering it to dust.

The castle was almost completely reduced to a smoking ruin in less then five minutes and she was worrying first that her friends would be buried beneath tons of immovable stone. Then her mind jumped to wondering if they were even still alive, as she watched the flames burst out of control within the structure.

Already she thought she could hear faint screams and shouts echoing out from within the now burning and collapsing castle. She dearly prayed that it was just her imagination or the wind.

As she watched the destruction and the squads of white armoured stormtroopers that were moving into view from further down the lake edge where their transports supposedly landed. She saw something else as well.

She watched as an Upsilion class shuttle emerged out of the dust and smoke of the burning castle and set itself down on the ground near the entrance to the courtyard. She also saw that one of the TIE fighters was also lowering itself down to the ground. Even as she watched she saw the fight activate its landing stands to support and balance the solar wings on the surface.

She was not sure who was in either ship. But as she watched the stormtroopers move through the clearing gunning down any of the survivors without mercy. She found that she did not care. All she knew was that her only 'friends?' in existence might be dead and she knew who was responsible. Feeling red hot rage pulsing through her she moved forward to confront the invades.

Spotting a lone trooper nearby talking to his radio. She pulled her blaster pistol from her belt, aimed and fired.

Or at least tried to fire. As the blaster clicked and did nothing, and she realised with a curse that she had left the safety on. But by that time the trooper had noticed her and fired, causing her to duck.

She switches off the safety and fires back! She hits two troopers and retreats, calling to BB-8 to follow her as he runs back through the forest with the trooper's friends in hot pursuit.

 **Kuvira – POV**

Kuvira fired her pistols again and brought down another criminal lowlife that had been scurrying out of the burning ruins of this castle.

Turning slightly, she saw a pirate duo shoot one of her troopers as they tried to make their way to a ship parked near the tree line. Before she could take them out they saw her and fired at her as well. She ducked behind one of the ruined columns of the courtyard and crouched low as more blaster bolts slammed into the other side of the stone.

With a face that was as composed as she would have been at her desk on the Reclaimer. She pulled a thermal detonator out of her flight suit and activated it. Within a moment she had flung it with all her accuracy at the two pirate bastards.

Unable to see the small explosive through the dust and smoke the pirates continued to fire at her defences and were unaware of the detonator landing by their feet.

Kuvira waited until a white flash and an explosion erupted from the pirate location. Followed by an agonising scream as she stepped out of cover and advanced quickly on the one remaining pirate. His colleague had been turned to paste at the centre of the explosion.

This one had not been as luck as both his legs had been blasted clean off and the right side of hi face was charred and blackened. He had dropped his weapon and was rolling on the ground paralysed with shock and pain. He was so lost in his agony that he did not react or defend himself as Kuvira marched past him. She only paused to turn and fire into his skull. Cutting his screams and suffering short. She did not bother to look back.

She moved past a blasted-out pile of rubble that might have once been an intricate and delicately carved mural on the wall. Now it just provided a local survivor a hiding place to leap out at her in an ambush attack.

The attacker, a human lowlife from the looks of him, came at her with a modified club of some sorts. Clearly he intended to bash her skull in with his improvised weapon. In most other cases his surprise attack might have worked as she was too close to effectively draw her blaster or aim it accurately in the short time she had before he collided with her.

But Kuvira was never such a fool to relay on one method defence.

As her attacker came at her Kuvira rammed her foot into his shin, causing him to stubble in his mad unplanned charge towards her. With his balance lost his arms flailed to try to regain his equilibrium. With his arms and weapon going wild, she brought her fist smashing into the side of his temple. With his brain rattled within his skull and the blow ringing against his skull's weakest point he was completely disorientated.

This allowed Kuvira all the time she needed to grab her vibroknife, attached to her belt and slash it across her enemy's throat.

Arterial blood spurted from the man's newly opened windpipe and gushed all over her uniform while she stood in close proximity to her victim. She stepped back as he clutched his throat and tried desperately to staunch the flow of crimson blood that even now was running down his hands and staining he front of his vest. He stumbled to his knees and then fell to his side as he tried in vain to stop is precious life fluid from leaking out of him.

Kuvira regained her blaster and fired into his face before continuing on. She knew from long lessons that a slowly killed victim could still kill her before he died. In the end, only turn your back to a corpse.

It was a lesson that the scrum in front of her had clearly not learned as he crotched behind a broken wall as he fired at her troops while keeping his back to her. The sound of the explosions and the blaster fire easily masked her approach and she could see that he was lost in tunnel vision. He was so focused on the enemy in front of him that he never considered to watch his other flanks.

She began to raise her blaster to blast the back of his skull into his teeth when she stopped for a moment before holstering her blaster.

If she shot him the noise might make others like him aware that she was in the area. In addition, she like to keep her skills sharp in all areas. As she came up behind him she watched as he gunned down another of her soldiers and her resolve only increased.

Silent as a spirit she grabbed the criminal by the chin and the back of his head. The criminal gave a muffled scream of surprise that was thankfully masked by the background noise and the grip she had on his jaw. Before he could do more than offer panicked struggles which were easy to counter. She has set her grip and twisted with full force. She was rewarded with a resounding crack as the spinal column shattered and the man went limp in her arms.

Satisfied, both with the result and the efficiency of the execution. She dropped the body like garbage and signalled to her troopers that the way was clear and to secure this firing position. Once her soldiers had arrived and resumed firing on the stragglers she moved on. Afterall she had not real interest in exterminating these vermin. She had a much more valuable quarry to locate on this world.

As she continued to move through the ruined courtyard she saw that her stormtroopers were dominating what battles were going on and most of the enemies were already surrendering. She saw Kylo Ren enter the courtyard and survey the situation as she was doing.

She could see he had noticed her as he began to move towards her and she moved towards him. There was something that was very enticing as she watched him move through the fire, smoke and battle as calmly as if he was an immortal shadow, to whom death held no power.

His calmness and composure. Combined with his undeniable power and resolve was something that made it hard for her to think as clearly as normal.

She tried to shake her strange thoughts away as she refocused on the battle. She admonished herself harshly at her lack of focus and discipline. It was lesson one as a soldier. That an unfocused and distracted soldier was a dead soldier.

Still as Kylo Ren and her moved closer together. For reasons she could not explain. It got harder to keep her mind in the moment. In a moment of frustration with herself (and while obscured by smoke) she slammed her blaster barrel into her side near the kidney. The sharp jolt of pain allowing her to dispel her errant thoughts and refocus on the situation.

Pain was a harsh taskmaster. But it was an effective one.

That was when a stormtrooper called out to Kylo Ren as they came to stand within talking distance from eachother. "Sir, the droid was spotted heading west, with a girl."

Kylo Ren looks back sharply in the direction the stormtrooper is indicating. Meanwhile Kuvira comes up beside him. He turns to face her, and even though she cannot see his face. She recognises his stance and posture enough to know what he is thinking.

"Go. Claim the droid and the girl if possible. I can oversee matters here." She states as she gestures to the increasing numbers of surrendered locals. Ordinarily she would have recommended that he simply kill the girl and claim the droid. But she could tell from his stance that he was interested in both members of that party for some reason she could not discern.

Kylo Ren looked at her for a moment then was strictly longer then necessary. Then he nodded and moved out of the courtyard and headed for the tree line to the west. Even as she watched she saw him pull his lightsaber from his belt and hold it (inactive) at the ready by his side.

Satisfied that the droid would soon be in their hands she turned her attention back to the gathering of prisoners that her soldiers were assembling in the remains of the castle courtyard, heavily guarded by her troops.

 **Finn - POV**

"Traitor!"

Finn turned his head at the sound of the voice that sounded so familiar. But the tone of voice and the words use were the kind that he had never expected to be directed at him by this person.

In front of him, as the battle raged around him and the TIE fighters continued to rain laser blasts down on the local resistance, stood a stormtrooper.

But not just any stormtrooper. FN-2199, nicknamed 'Nines', was from Finn's old unit and had been up until recently, Finn's best friend. They along with their other friend 'Zeroes' had been part of the same squad that Finn had been assigned the leadership role before they were deployed to active combat.

He remembered how he and Nines had gone through training together. How they had been assigned to the same details together. How they had sat up late in their barracks talking, laughing, dreaming. And how he had wished he could have said a proper goodbye before he had deserted with Poe on the Finalizer.

Finn had not expected to run into Nines again in the near future. In fact, h had not seriously expected to run into him against at all. It was a pretty big galaxy out there after all. If had expected it, he might have taken some time to figure out what he was going to say to his one-time friend when they reunited.

But it was clear that Nines had no interest in talking to him now. Even as he tried to think of something he could say to reason with his former friend. Niens raised his weapon of choice. A Z6 riot control baton.

Finn reluctantly raised his newest acquisition. The 'lightsaber' that Maz had given him from her collection of junk in her basement and activated the blue blade.

Nines wasted no time and charged into battle swinging his baton like a club and smashing it down on his weakly held weapon, forcing him back several steps. Nines swung at him with a berserker style fury and his blows came down with such a force that he had to fight to make sure his lightsaber was not pushed back into his own face.

And strength was not the only problem.

He was using his weapon like a rank amateur. It was weightless and felt off balance and wrong to him. He was swinging it with the intend of a child and all the grace to match. The simple fact was that without some kind of proper training. He cold not use this weapon effectively.

Nines meanwhile had trained his whole life to wield the baton. He had spent hours and hours honing his skill with it. Finn knew this because he had often watched him in the training rooms. He wielded his cumbersome, heavy weapon with the skill of a Zeltron dancer. And as Finn watched he swung and spun it around the mobile handle before swinging it down on his dead yet again.

Finn was no match for him.

He was forced to stagger back and back. Trying desperately to fend of his one-time friend's attacks with the desperation of a drowning man. All the while trying to make sure that he did not trip or stumble on the endless mounds of rubble that lay around him.

He pulled the only tactic he had left and charged at Nines. He brought his glowing blade down on his lost friend again and again hoping to slip past his defences and bring him down. But Nines was an expert at this king of fighting and every blow was blocked almost casually.

Finn felt his spirits sink even lower, but he pressed the attack. Determined to smash through Nines defences.

That goal became moot a second later when Nines drove the end of his baton into his chest and the resulting electric jolt sent him flying back at least five metres. He landed on his back in the middle of the destroyed courtyard with the lightsaber deactivating as his grip loosened around the hilt.

He struggled to keep his eyes open as the electrical charge sent through his body played havoc on his brain. Meanwhile his limbs were completely using as the voltage had reduced them to jelly. As he lay on the ground, disorientated and helpless be vaguely saw Nines come up to stand over him with his baton sparking and crackling with lightning as he prepared to deliver the final blow.

Finn dearly wished that his tongue was not numb and useless due to the electrical charge he had coursing through him. He wished he could have spoken to Nines one last time. What he would have said he didn't really know. But it would probably be either an apology for abandoning him and Zeroes without any explanation. It might have been a plea to join him in his search for a life free or the First Order and responsibilities in the Outer-Rim. Or it might have been a simple act of begging for his life.

Again, the situation became moot as Nines raised his weapon to deliver the coup de grace. Of all the many ways he had considered that he would seriously die recently. Being executed at the hand of his best friend really had not been one of them.

If Nines felt any regrets. Finn would never know. As Nines began to bring is baton down on Finn's exposed head. A blaster bolt hit him square in the chest and sent him flying to land in a pile of rubble, where he lay still. Meanwhile above him Han and Chewie stood over him while Han carried a still humming bow caster rifle.

As Finn regained control of his muscle movements and functions and he was hauled to his feet, he was torn on how to react. On the one had he wanted to thank Han for saving him. On the other had he wanted to stab him for killing his (former) best friend. The fact that he had been about to kill him notwithstanding.

"You okay, Big deal?" Han asked.

In the end gratitude won out.

"Thanks!" Finn gasped as he clasped Han's hand and gave both him and the Wookie a look of appreciation. But that quickly changed when he heard a very familiar phase being spoken while he turned to find that a blaster rifle was aimed at his face.

"Don't move! TK-338, we have targets in custody!" The stormtrooper commander relayed into his comm as his comrades relived Han, Finn and Chewie of all their weapons.

It was at that moment that Finn was able to survey the battlefield properly for the first time since running headlong into it. And what he saw did not encourage him.

The TIE fighters still patrolled the sky, but they were not firing into the castle anymore. Both to not risk hitting their own troops and because they no longer need too. The locals that remained alive (and there were few) had surrendered and were being marched to where they now stood. And like them they were surrounded by First Order stormtroopers.

The ones who had stayed in the castle were either dead in the many fires that were raging across the fortress. Buried underneath tones of rubble from the collapses and blasted structure. Or they would be rooted out and blasted by the stormtroopers that were even now filing into castle to begin the search. Or hunt might have been a better choice of words.

And as he watched the scene before him. His eyes caught sight of an individual coming directly towards him and Han. Seeing her made him briefly wish that Nines, had just finished the job.

 **Han – POV**

Han watched as the First Order soldiers that were keeping their weapons trained on him, Chewie and Finn parted and allowed one of their number walk up towards them.

The first thing he noticed about this person was that she appeared to be a female pilot based on the way she was dressed in the standard First Order pilot flight suit. He also saw a TIE interceptor parked just outside the ruined walls of the courtyard. He assumed that was her ship as none of the rest of the enemy goons were wearing pilot gear.

The next thing he noted was that she was attractive, in the military sense. Now that he thought about it she had the same thing going for her that Leia had during the rebellion days. They had the same sense of presence that people gravitated too. They had the same, posture and stance that spoke of a savage defiant spirit that would not break or yield. Even the way they walked was somewhat similar. It was suited to a military situation, but also bore a grace and elegance that was both learned and somewhat inherent. In his private thoughts he wondered if this was what Han and Leia's daughter might have looked like if they had one.

But while Leia had walked with strength and warmth. The strength that assured those around her that she would always protect and be there for them. This woman walked with strength and steel. The strength that told her allies that this was the bulwark they should stand with. And told her enemies to submit or be crushed.

He winced. Thinking about Leia was painful.

He continued to examine the approaching woman. She was quite young. In her late twenties he would hazard to guess. Roughly around Ben's age.

He winced again. Thinking about Ben was even more painful.

However, despite her young age and the fact that she was dressed in a standard TIE pilot uniform. The way the soldiers gave way before her and showed her the utmost respect with the way they saluted and acted around her showed him that her rank was way higher then theirs.

Finally, the blood-stained weapons she was carrying and the large amount of blood staining her suit was a bit unnerving. And based on the ease that she walked, it was not her own blood. He also knew from long days as a smuggler. That people who lost that much blood did not tend to live.

Satisfied that she was both important and clearly dangerous. Han's mind began working his way through the different methods and lines he could use to increase their odds of surviving.

He quickly dismissed the idea of sweet talk.

That tactic had not been nearly as effective these days as it had once been. Possibly due to the vast increase in grey hair he had gathered. Besides he could tell from her cold emerald eyes that she would happily shoot him in the throat if he annoyed her enough.

He seriously doubted that he could fight his way out of this situation. He and Chewie had lost their weapons and they had taken his concealed sidearm after searching him thoroughly. Finn had also lost Luke's lightsaber and was also unharmed. Plus, he was still suffering from the shock baton that stormtrooper had hit him with. His mobility and balance would still be compromised for the next few minutes. Not really the best status to be in when they were in a situation that called for timing, precision and speed.

That fell back to his two least favourite options. Negotiate or Surrender.

He hated negotiating because it generally led to him losing some portion of his profit margin. Or something else that was valuable and therefore he did not want to give it up. But again, looking at the young woman coming towards him. He seriously doubted that he had anything she might want.

At least nothing material.

That left surrender. Naturally he hated that option more then the others for obvious reasons. So, he resolved to wait until the situation changed and allowed a more favourable option to become available.

He just hoped the change in situation would not be the three of them going from alive to dead.

The woman came to a stop in front of them. Though carefully out of reach of the angry Wookie. She studied them for a moment and Han had the feeling he was being X-rayed. Then she turned to her soldiers nearby.

"Is this all of them captain?" She asked the lead trooper who nodded.

"All the surviving prisoners on the surface, Admiral. The rest are taking refuge in the forest or in the lower levels of the castle. Teams are on stand by to press on to subdue them." The trooper reported.

'Admiral?' That set of a warning bell in Han's mind. He had not been part of the rebellion, resistance or whatever it was called these days. But he had kept up to date with galactic affairs. A woman of this age and that held an Admiral's rank could only be Admiral Kuvira.

He would have cursed if he had the chance.

Kuvira turned back to Han and looked him square in the eyes. She then turned to Finn and did the same to him causing the former stormtrooper to turn away from her gaze. Then she turned back to Han.

"Do you have any concerns with us sending our soldiers into claim the entire castle, captain Solo? Do you have any preferences to which course of action we should take?" She asked in a tone one might have used to ask what you were in the mood to eat for lunch.

Han just stared back at her in silence. Partly in defiance and partly because he was not sure what she was after with this line of questioning.

But clearly he must have had some kind of reaction that she was looking for, because after a few seconds she turned back to her captain. "Seems the reports were correct. The droid is not in the castle. It is not worth losing troopers to claim the castle lower levels. Set charges, collapse the tunnels and bury the criminal scum. Make the castle their mausoleum." She ordered calmly.

The trooper nodded and sent his orders to his troopers who began to carry them out.

Han and Chewie glared and growled respectfully at Kuvira. They had no connection to the people in the castle (except Maz who had already escaped to her pre-prepared shelters), but the callousness and ruthlessness had struck a chord. It reminded them of Vader and other Imperial officers from the 'good old days.'

Kuvira turned back to Han and after a moment began speaking.

"Captain Solo. We have never had the pleasure, but I am well aware who you are and what you have done in your life." She noted

Han could not resist. "Well that is nice, most stalkers are not so open with their secret obsessions." He joked with a smile. He could feel Finn and Chewie rolling their eyes. But Kuvira did not react at all to his bait.

"We therefore know that you are no longer part of the Resistance or affiliated with the formerly illegal organisation known as the New Republic. All our many sources confirm you are a simple spacefaring privateer. (She clearly did not like using such a legal sounding word for smuggler). We are therefore willing to overlook your cooperation with this traitor and these fugitives from the First Order world of Jakku. It was simply a matter of getting your ship back. I can understand that." She said in a voice that was purely factual and devoid of all emotion. Leaving only simple logic in her tone.

"We are not the Empire, captain Solo. So, we do not hold you actions against them against you. We can be very profitable business partners to you captain. We can make use of your skills and you can make advantage of our monetary resources." She concluded

Han did not respond to her sales pitch and after a moment she continued.

"For example, if you were to agree to a contract right now. It would be the start of a long and profitable relationship with the First Order. If you were to help us claim the BB-8 droid unit and the information it carries. We would pay you a sum of five million credits. Payable in what ever form of currency you personally prefer. I can even have an official legal business contract drawn up in case my personal word is not enough."

She took a step closer

"Come now captain. It is a new day in the galaxy and new people in the seats of power. You are business man at heart and I am offering you a deal that very few ever get. Being set up for life with your ship and your friend sitting with you on the beaches of Rishi or the spa's of Maanan. Do not be a fool and reject it for a dying hopeless cause that you cut ties with long ago. Take the deal." She finished and stepped back. He eyes watching him and they seemed almost hypnotic in their willing him to accept her deal.

Han paused for a moment. But it was just a moment.

Yes, all she had said was true. He had cut ties with the Resistance and New Republic years ago. Yes, he was a business man at heart.

But if he was that kind of business man he would have left Luke and the rebels on Yavin to face the Death Star alone. He would have left Hoth the second the Empire showed up to pay of his debt to that fat slug Jabba. And he would never have volunteered to lead a suicide mission to Endor.

He had his faults. Many of them had become more apparent in the years since Endor. His failure as a husband. His appalling failure as a father. His failure to commit to anything without feeling the urge to run away. His inability to stay in one place to build something on what he had gained.

But he liked to thing he had his virtues too. And one of them was loyalty.

Smirking he faced the expectant Admiral. "In the words of a good friend. This is the last mistake you will ever make." He smiled mockingly at Kuvira.

The Admiral signed dramatically. "Well I cannot say that was unexpected. With that in mind you will be deemed an enemy of the First Order and taken for questioning." She paused as if remembering something suddenly. "There is also need to consider the matter of your extensive escape record."

The next thing Han new was excruciating pain and he suddenly found his legs could not support his wait and he fell to the ground in agony. Unable to help himself he screamed as the pain in his knee's seemed to double as the shock wore off. He was vaguely aware of Chewie roaring in rage and Finn calling his name while crouching down to help him.

As the blinding pain faded slightly he caught the echo of a blaster fading into the tree's and looked down at his knees to see both had smoking blaster wounds in the side of his kneecaps. He looked up and saw Kuvira with her still smoking blaster now aimed at an enraged Chewbacca face.

"One more step Wookie and I will use your corpse as my new throw rug." She stated dangerously.

With a lot more snarling and growling Chewbacca backed down. Even a Wookie would die from a blaster bolt to the head at point-blank range. The Wookie also bent down to help his friend as Kuvira relayed orders to her troops.

"Bind them and take them to the transports. The rest of you secure the perimeter and begin a sweep of the forest." With that she walked back to her TIE fighter.

Finn, Han and Chewie are marched/dragged by Stormtroopers back toward a transport, hands bound and Han moaning in agony.


	12. Chapter 12 - Battle of Takodana: Part 2

**AlwaysChillen98: I agree. Even though I support the Empire and First Order over the Rebellion and the Resistance. It its hard to get on board with some of the stuff that they do. I mean the destruction or one or several planets is a very hard thing to justify. The best you can do is place it with Hiroshima and say it saves lives in the long run. However, the Rebellion has done some pretty dark shit as well. It is one of the reasons I liked Rogue One as it finally made the Rebellion less like comic book heroes and more like an actual realistic insurrection/terrorist group. I am glad you like the Zeltron reference. I am trying to add as many Canon and EU references as I can to join the two together as best I can.**

 **Edboy4926: As always thank you for the review. I will check out the Gundum UC anime when I get the chance. But at the moment I have at least a dozen anime and shows to catch up on and I am not sure when I will have time to start a new one.**

 **TishaLiz: Thanks for the review. I am aware that many reviews etc have commented that they want more of Kuvira and Kylo Ren interacting and more obvious romance between the two. The problem is that neither Kylo or Kuvira are the cuddling and 'romantic walks on the beach' kind of people. I am determined to give them the kind of romance that people like them would actually find themselves in. The kind that they resist and try to deny. Even then it might be more passion then love. But I will ensure that develops albeit slowly.**

 **Mistress Peregrine: I really appreciate the review it was very inspiring to read. In regard to your comments on the 'villains' and 'heroes' I am glad. The main point behind the story is to show that there is good and bad on both sides of every war ever fought. And I am glad that you like Kuvira. I based a lot of her character of the Kuvira from the Legend of Korra. But I am glad that I have made her an independent character for this fanfic. I also apricate the advice for the Kuvira and Kylo romance. As you pointed out given their personalities it is not easy to right them in a romantic light while sticking to their characters. I have some idea of how I think their relationship would develop. I feel that it would be more passion then love. At least at the start of the relationship. Regardless I hope I don't disappoint you and I welcome any feedback or ideas.**

 **Chapter 12 – Battle of Takodana. Part 2**

 **Takodana – Maz's Castle Courtyard**

 **Kylo Ren – POV**

Kylo Ren ignited his lightsaber as he mounted the crest of the hill that the girl and droid had climbed to take refuge from his troopers. But clearly based on the stunned expression on the girl's face. She had not expected to come face to face with the likes of him.

As his crimson lightsaber burst from the hilt he took the time enjoy the rasping sound of the energy blade as it flashed into existence and the hilt blades that also came to life with their beautiful crimson hue a second later.

But before he could do anymore introspective thinking, the force screamed a warning of danger in his mind emanating from the girl. Acting on instinct, he swung his lightsaber as he was forced to bat aside the blaster bolts that were sent at his masked face. With the skill and precision born of years of training, he sent them harmlessly into the rock and trees of his woodland surroundings.

He focused back to the material world and saw that the Jakku girl was directly in front of him. She was standing further along the small earthen canyon that had formed in the forest floor. She held her quaint and clearly outdated blaster pistol pointing directly at him. It would have been more impressive if the hand holding the weapon had not been trembling like a leaf. Even if it had not been he would have known of her terror even if he was completely deaf and blind to the currents of the Force.

Her face was a mask of panic and desperation as she sent another bolt of plasma directly at him. Only for him to smack it away with contemptuous ease. As he did so he could see and sense her desperation growing as she backpaddled down the canyon trying to get away from him.

He strode after her as she continued to send bolt after bolt at him in her efforts to bring him down and escape from his wrath. But all her efforts were useless. His lightsaber was always where it needed to be to send the lethal bolts of energy flying off into the distance. And in some cases, her hand was shaking so violently that she missed entirely as the bolts slammed harmlessly into the tree's and ground around him.

When she finally realised that her blaster was about as useful against him as a rock, she turned on her heel and scrambled up the side of the ditch that they had been moving down. Kylo quickly climbed up after her. He did not even break his stride in his pursuit as more blasts of red energy came flying at him.

He slapped them away and even as he did so he could see the girl's face begin to take on a hopeless expression. He realised that she was coming to realise that she could not kill or defeat him. But she had nothing else to do but keep trying, keep firing until her charge ran empty. Or, far more likely, he became bored and sliced her apart.

In truth he enjoyed the terror and fear pouring from her into the Force. He drew it into himself and used it to fuel the Dark Side that burned like an inferno within his body. He was not just feeding on her own fearful emotions in the force. He was gorging himself on them and using them to further focus and increase his own power. It was part of his master's training that was apparently derived from the techniques of the ancient Sith Lord Darth Malgus. And he was relishing the chance to use them in combat once again. But as much as he was enjoying her despair he was on a schedule.

With that he smacked away the most recently blaster bolt that she sent his way and thrust out with the force. With the speed of thought, he commanded it to wrap around the girl and bind her in place as he felt the power rush through him to obey his silent command.

In an instant the girl froze in place in mid motion. She flinched and shuddered as she tried in vain to move her no completely solid limbs. But it was to no avail. To the un-trained eye. It looked like she had suddenly decided to start imitating a statue at the worst possible time. The only sign of life that could be seen where her still moving eyes. First they widened in shock as she tried to comprehend what the kriff was happening to her. Then they began darting left and right as she desperately sought some means of escape. Until finally they dimmed in despair as she realised that there was no hope or escape from this prison of her own body. That was when her eyes stopped moving and settled back to stare at him as he approached her slowly. With his still lit lightsaber now hanging by his side.

Kylo Ren observed all these different and unique emotions flash across her face and through the force as he comes closer to her. He relishes the reaction he creates while drinking deeply from the dark side of the force as he comes to stand directly in front of her.

It was at these moments that he felt closest to his grandfather. The moment when his enemies and victims realised they were helpless before his overwhelming power. He wondered if this was how Darth Vader had felt when he was force choking a subordinate that had failed him. Or when he went into battle against rebels and they soon realised that they could never hope to harm him as he slaughtered them.

He knew he would never know for certain. But as he came to a stop in front of the terrified girl. He was confident that Vader would have understood the rush of power that he gained from his enemy's fear and despair. It was the way of the dark side after all.

"The girl I've heard so much about." He stated in a calm voice. Knowing from long experience that it tended to terrify prisoners more then shouting and posturing. He walks around her, slowly. And as he does he can see that is trying desperately to not let herself cry.

"The droid?" He asks simply. He knew that she was aware what he was after.

The girl didn't answer.

Deciding to make his point completely clear he raises his lightsaber and brings it to rest just above the place between her shoulder and her neck. He doesn't need to watch her face to know that she is looking very intently at the spitting energy blade that was inches away from taking her head off.

But despite the overwhelming fear he senses emanating from the girl. She still refused to answer his question or reveal the droid's location. Even as he felt his irritation spike. Kylo Ren could not help but feel his respect for her go up a notch. He had no compunctions about killing men, women or children to complete his wishes or his master's orders. But he was not without a sense or honour. And this girl's fortitude was commendable, if completely foolish and misplaced.

After another moment of silence. Kylo Ren turns off his lightsaber, reaches up towards the girl's face.

At first the girls appears more confused than anything. Then her confusion quickly turns to pain as she feels his power as it invades her mind and thoughts. He transcends deeper into the force as the physical surroundings of the forest falls away and soon he his delving into her unprotected mind as one might read a holo-dairy.

He flicks through her most sacred and personal memories and then discards them as one would an old boot and then moved on to the next one in his fervent search. She can't move but she strains in agony in her desperation to escape his hold.

He has to admit she has a much stronger will then he though that a desert rat like her would have. He usually found this as easy as reading a written text on a datapad. But even as he searched her mind he could feel her fighting and resisting him. She was trying desperately to keep him out of her most important memories. In those cases, it was like a thick layer of fog had been placed over his eyes and he had to increase his power in order to break through her mental barriers.

But in the end it was a waste of effort as he smashed through her mental resistance and found what he was looking for. After a beat he stepped back, surprised by what he had found, and he removes his hand from its position near her face as he releases his power. She is clearly relieved but still afraid as she feels the pressure lessen around her mind, but not her body.

"The map. You've seen it." Kylo Ren whispers in realisation.

Rey is horrified and before she can utter a denial he touches her face again and her mind explodes in pain and tears force themselves from her eyes as Kylo Ren takes even more from her mind. There is a desperation behind his mental attacks now. If he can access that memory from her mind and see the image of the map. Then he will have won. Not just this battle but everything. He would not need the droid, or the girl. He would have the information that was crucial to this war in his own possession and the rewards from his master would be infinite. With all that in mind he redoubled his efforts to rip that crucial memory image from her mind.

At this point he did not care if the mind probe left her brain dead. It would be a trivial sacrifice compared to what he gained. However, Kylo Ren, mid-interrogation, turns toward the sound of the explosions coming from the castle and as he watches, stormtroopers approach through the woods.

"Sir, Resistance fighters! We need more troops." The stormtrooper in command of the small group exclaims after snapping off a quick salute.

 **Finn – POV**

"Drop him and put your hands on your head" The Stormtrooper ordered.

Finn and Chewie who had been carrying the crippled Han towards the area that the other prisoners had been assembled, reluctantly obeyed. They lowered Han as gently as they good to the ground, while taking care not to jostle his injured legs to much.

Still despite their best efforts. Han uttered a hiss of pain as he felt he blaster wounds in his knee's flare up with red hot agony. Finn bent down again to try and move the leg into a position that would not be as painful. But before he could even touch Han the end of a blaster rifle was jammed roughly into the small of his back.

Slowly he stood, back upright and placed his hands on his head. Knowing that there was nothing he could do for Han at the moment. And any more attempts might end up with him getting a blaster bolt to the back of his head.

He knew that Kuvira had left strict orders to keep Han and the Wookie alive, before she had got back in her TIE fighter and had taken off. As important members of the old Rebel Alliance and people with connections to the current Resistance leadership. They were invaluable prisoners. Both as sources of information and as a moral weapon against their enemies and for their own troops.

To see the great and famous Han Solo and Chewbacca in chains right in the opening stages of the war would be a crushing blow to the Resistance, its allies and any in the galaxy who might have been considering join up to their cause. It would certainly make them think twice about fighting against the First Order if their heroes of legend were dealt with so easily.

It would also have a similar effect on the supporters of the First Order that the Empire would be avenged and that the had clearly backed the winning side.

But he also knew that she had left no such orders for him. He was a nobody. Just a filthy traitor to the First Order and from the look he had seen in her eyes as she glanced at him. Nothing would give her more pleasure then slitting his throat with her vibro-blade. And he knew, even with their concealing helmets. That his former comrades were glaring at him, eager to do exactly the same thing.

In fact, he was pretty sure that the only reason he was still alive is because she wanted to have it done properly, publicly, in front of the entire First Order with laser axes by the punishment troopers.

But he knew that unlike Han and Chewie. There was no special order to keep him alive. And all it would take is one overly zealous stormtrooper eager to avenge 'Nines' and he would be 'shot while trying to escape'. He briefly wondered just how many murders had been covered up with that particular excuse. Probably too many to count.

But whatever the number was. He was not interested in adding another one to the statistic. As he and the others stood with their hands on their heads he noticed that the commander was listening to his helmet com while other soldiers began to gesture and point across the lake towards the fog that was visible through the shattered wall fragments.

As he watched he could make out the sounds and voices that were being exchanged between the stormtroopers and over their commlinks.

"We have incoming at two-eight-point six! Move! Dispatch! Move! Scramble all squads! Repeat scramble all squads! Anti-air cover en-route to our position!"

Finn was not sure what they hell was going on. But whatever it was it sounded urgent and it did not sound like it was planned by the troopers. That meant that it was probably bad for them and therefore good for him. Not that he thought he could make it to the tree line without getting blasted anytime soon.

As he mused the troopers began to move towards the still standing sections of the collapsed wall and left only a fraction of their number to guard the assembled prisoners. He remembered enough of his training to know that this was not standard First Order doctrine when dealing with a group of prisoners of this number.

By his feet her heard Han grunting and groaning as he pulled himself into a sitting up position so that he could look out across the lake as well. And through the grimace of pain a small smile started to break through.

"It's the Resistance." He said in triumph

And then a familiar roar ripping across the lake. Coming toward them across the water, X-wings and resistance spacecraft appear and without hesitating, began firing at the First Order ships! One x-wing in particular, marked in black, swoops down and takes out the remaining parked TIE fighters and troopers beside it!

The troopers return fire immediately, but it is clear from the first few seconds of the combat that they are hopelessly outmatched. Their weapons were not designed to take down starfighters and it showed as the blasts pinged off their armour while the x-wings continued to pound their positions with cannon fire and send them flying.

The strength of their weapons was such that they often they landed in several different places.

In one such case the guards surrounding the imprisoned trio were blasted to the ground, never to rise again. Finn took the time to wonder if the pilot was simply that good at aiming. Or if he and just fired and not cared if he hit stormtroopers or a bunch of randomers at an outer rim smugglers den. In the end he decided he had other things to focus on then the moral compass of the pilot.

Taking the opportunity, he and Chewie grabbed Han off the ground and (ignoring his sounds of pain) ran for cover while taking the time to grab their weapons, and Luke's lightsaber of the ground. With Han unable to stand or run they had to get him to some form of cover and as the they blasted their way to a junction wall, they brought down any trooper that tried to stop them.

In the meantime, they watched as the Resistance X-wings, led by the black one continued to dominate the skies above the castle as one TIE after another was blasted out of the sky or reduced to molten slag in mid-air.

"Woohoo! YEAH! That's one helluva pilot!" Finn cheered as the black X-wing brings down another three TIE fighters in quick succession with expert manoeuvres. With this fighter ace action, the sky battle was beginning to come to a close, as the Resistance begins to mop up the remains of the First Order forces. While on the ground the troopers that had been left to guard unarmed prisoners after the battle were being taken down by the combination of fire from the X-wings and those prisoners who had taken the opportunity to break free and grab discarded weapons of the ground.

Finn breathed a sigh of relief at the sight

At least that was until a rain of green energy bolts fired down from the sky and brought four of the x-wings crashing to the ground in a devastating attack volley.

Finn's eyes widened in horror and Han cursed as an entire new squadron of TIE fighters burst out of the smoke and clouds to bring the battle back to a bloody chaotic melee with each side fighting desperately for victory and survival.

 **Kuvira - POV**

Kuvira banked her TIE fighter hard to the left as the squadron begins to form up on her order in battle formation. As she adjusts her controls and calibrates her targeting array she watches through her cockpit viewpoint as the fog that had settled over the castle lake gave way to the oncoming threat.

About two dozen or so Resistance X-wings were streaking across the surface of the water in attack formation. And even as she watched she could see that their wings were parting from each other to form their namesake battle stance.

She was mentally torn in that moment.

One the one hand the Resistance fighters were moving fast and furiously towards the smoking ruins of the castle that her troops were still located. They had been left there to oversee the subduing of the prisoners and the task of relocating them to the troop transports that were still waiting on the outskirts of the shattered castle courtyard walls. They would take the prisoners off world to their ships and from there to one of the many detention facilities that they had set up across their territory. To make sure that they were probably interrogated for useful information.

But now those troops on the ground were defenceless against the oncoming x-wing fighters. Their blaster rifles were not strong enough to damage the fighters or make them veer off their attack vector. The only weapon they had on the ground that could destroy them was the assault cannon. And that was not nearly accurate enough to target mobile starfighters.

Even if they had managed to make it to the troop transports. They were without weapons, armour or shields and completely unable to match the speed and manuverability of the fighter craft. They would be blown out of the sky the second that they cleared the castle walls.

The simple truth was that in a fight against the fighters and the Resistance pilots. Her troops on the ground where hopelessly outmatched.

But then, on the other hand. Those same fighters did not know that Kuvira's squadron was still within the upper atmosphere above the castle. They had clearly been waiting for the TIE fighters to leave so that they could launch their attack. But they clearly did not know just how many improvements the First Order had made to the TIE fighter since the days of the Empire.

One of which included vastly superior sensor capabilities.

So, while they thought that the TIE fighters were too far away to pick up their signatures on their scanners. In fact, they were even now preparing to descend of the Resistance attack squadron as they began to open fire on the First Order stormtroopers

Kuvira adjusted her weapons array once more as she and her squadron burst from the clouds and smoke that had provided them cover and bolted straight for the x-wings that continued to send red streaks of plasma energy into the hastily erected defences and firing lines that the troopers had been able to set up.

But she could see that the prisoners were using this attack as a distraction and took the opportunity to begin a firefight within he formerly pacified courtyard below her. She sighed. For one moment there had been order on Takodana, and now thanks to the Resistance chaos reigned on this planet once again. There was a lesson in that, she was sure. But now was not the time to be philosophical.

Now was the time to be deadly.

"Pick your targets, avoid cross fire and maintain communication channel discipline." She ordered into her commlink. Short, sweet and to the point. She barely registered the string of acknowledgments from he comrades before she locked on to a T-65B X-Wing directly below her and fired.

She watched as her green laser blasts slammed into the unsuspecting fighter on the wing junction. The impact with the close range caused the wing to be blasted clean off the fighter in a gout of flame. The x-wing immediately went into a spinning dive towards the ground before it slammed into the previously glassy surface of the lake.

Chaos quickly erupted as the initial TIE fighter attack brought down three other X-Wings in the opening volley and they either exploded into confetti or their burning hulks crashed among the battling throng on the ground, causing even more madness to erupt in the battle. The X-wings that had avoided the attack or not been targeted scattered as their attack formations were forcibly abandoned to avoid the raining green death lancing from the sky.

Kuvira circled around and found herself on the tail of another x-wing. The pilot desperately tried to veer off to the right as she sent a stream of cannon fire at the place it had been a second ago. She banked her TIE fighter and shot off in pursuit of the weaving x-wing across the top of the tree line.

The x-wing weaved to the left and she followed, firing until she managed to score a hit on the upper casing of the engine compartment and destroyed the pilots astromech droid in the process. The engine must have taken damage too as the x-wing suddenly lost power. With the sudden loss of motion and no astromech to even attempt to fix it, the ship went sinning end over end until it smashed into the forest which erupted in a ball of fire, that almost immediately began to spread.

Kuvira's instruments screamed a warning, and she manged to pull her TIE fighter in to a steep climb just before the blasts of red energy zoomed past the space she had occupied moments ago.

She pulled the TIE fighter into a semi-circle spin as she brought the ground back into her viewport. She has lost the chance to return fire on the X-wing that had very nearly ended her life a second ago. But she had been fortunate enough to come down from her manoeuvre right on top of a pair of X-wings that were blasting away at one of her squadron mates as they flew above the castle. As she watched she keyed into the intercom channel and heard the pilot, AI-3476, calling for assistance. His tone indicated that the panic of the situation was starting to override his senses, as he weaved and dodged desperately to escape the barrage.

She fired at the two-pursuing x-wings and she watched with satisfaction as one of her blasts hit the ship directly in the cockpit of the fighter. The canopy erupted in a ball of fire and the pilot was almost certainly incinerated instantly. With no control and with the pilot dead the x-wing immediately banked and spun out of control. The fighters' death throws came to a violent and sudden end as it smashed into one of the few remaining towers of the burning castle. And just like that the castle had no remaining towers.

She brought her targeting array back on the other x-wing that was pursuing AI-3476's TIE fighter. But before she could fire at the resistance pilot. The x-wing landed a hit directly on the connection between the fighter's main body and the left solar wing. The TIE went spinning out of control and plunged into the ground where it tore a burning trail through the soil before it impacted on the tree line and exploded into debris. She was mercifully saved from needing to mute the comm connection, as (in an unexpected show of fortitude) AI-3476 showed the strength die with dignity and silence.

Still, the x-wing did not get to enjoy their victory for long as Kuvira engaged the engine full throttle towards the resistance craft as she blazed away with her cannons. The x-wing had no time to react or escape and they quickly shared the fate of her lost comrade as she flew through the exploding fragments of the x-wing and climbed the sky to gain altitude.

Two of her wing mates formed up on her flanks as she ascended into the sky once more away from the treetops. As she did, she noticed that a trio of x-wings had broken off from the ensuing battle and had turned to head straight at them.

She also noticed that the lead x-wing in the centre was a distinctive black colour. She also noticed that it was a newer and more updated model of the T-70 X-wing. Clearly the best that the New Republic and Resistance had at their disposal. And she recognised the x-wing immediately.

It was Black One. The personal ship of Poe Dameron. The Resistance's best pilot fighter ace and more recently her erstwhile escaped prisoner from Jakku.

She grimaced. She had thought that Poe had died during the escape on Jakku. Probably from a result of the crash itself. She had then concluded that even if he had somehow survived the crash. He would have never made it out of the Jakku wasteland alive. While she was not typically one to assume anything. She had felt that this was one situation where the odds of his survival were astronomical.

But it seemed the Force was once again blessing the cursed Resistance with an obscene amount of luck. Dameron was not only alive. He had somehow found a way off Jakku which had been declared under standard temporary newly annexation blockade. And he had found a way back to the Resistance to prove himself a pest yet again.

But this time Dameron had no vital information within his head. And therefore, she had no reason to keep him alive this time. It was a very liberating realisation as she keyed the comm connection.

"Stay in attack formation. Take position with the sun to our rear and dive upon them". She commanded as she received confirmations from her wing mates. "And show no mercy." She added.

As the six-fighter craft came together she and he wing-mates opened fire with green lases lashing towards the x-wings. The x-wings returned fire and for a moment the air was filled with streaks of red and green. As if the sky was somehow at war with itself. By some act of miracle, none of the six fighters were destroyed in the initial volley. She thanked the sun for its position behind them and right in the faces of the x-wings as she noticed several of their shots go wide.

"Break formation engage all hostiles." She commanded. And then the lines were met, and the formations broke as the pilots took evasive action. However, before she could latch on to another target she was forced to plunge into a screaming 45-degree angle to avoid a hail red plasma that flew past her ship. She did not need her instruments to tell her who was trying to kill her. Only one pilot in this fight could have placed themselves behind her fighter that fast and fired with such accuracy while doing so.

"Dameron!" She hissed.

She engaged the engine and shot off across the forest with Dameron's black x-wing following close behind her. She dodged and weaved left and right as he continued to send shot after shot at her. She was forced to utilise all of her piloting skills to avoid them as she climbed into the sky while the blasts from Dameron's x-wing set the forest on fire with explosions.

As she moved higher into the sky she tried to keep the sun directly in front of her as much as possible. While it did blind her slightly. Her all-encompassing pilot helmet allowed her to block out the worst of the intense glare of Takodana's large system star. Dameron on the other had would only have the standard New Republic helmet. And while it did have a mediocre visor. He would be almost half blind as he fired at her. Which was a situation she preferred to keep intact.

As she flew towards the cloud line she was forced to perform a complete barrel roll to avoid Dameron's latest barrage and he responded by spinning to make his laser fire come at her from alternative angles. Diving through the clouds she was momentarily obscured from his sight and she realised that this was her chance to reverse the fortunes of this dogfight. After a moment's consideration, she took the opportunity to cut all power to the engine and to place the counter measures off.

Her TIE fighter immediately began to fall back towards the ground as the velocity force was lost and gravity began to take hold. But she was more focused on the shadow of Dameron's black x-wing, (visible through the cloud cover) passing over her suddenly stalled ship as he searched for her.

She was now behind him.

With speed borne of obsessive training she restarted the engine and systems and prayed that it did not fail to restart from the sudden and dangerous shut down. But she was rewarded with the sound of the engine reigniting and within seconds she was bursting of the cloud cover and unleashing a hail of green blasts on Dameron's x-wing. She had hoped that surprise and the unexpected angle of her attack would be enough to startle Dameron for the crucial second until her attack destroyed him.

But Dameron was not a legendary fighter pilot for nothing. While she did land a hit on his top left engine, it appeared that his ship was undamaged. He then, sent his x-wing into a curve dive to the right and soon she was in a screaming dive towards the lake with the battle still raging above and beside it.

Kuvira banked her craft and pursued him while continuing to send cannon fire down at his fighter. She was frustrated that she had been unable to bring down Dameron. Especially after all the trouble he had personally caused both her and the First Order.

But this battle was not in doubt.

The Resistance had only about two dozen or so fighters at the start of the battle. Now they had lost almost half of them and they had no chance of reinforcements that could make it to the battle in time. In contrast she was already relaying commands into her commlink to the Reclaimer in orbit to dispatch two more squadrons to the planet surface. Even then they had another three wings that could be dispatched to the battle almost immediately. That did not even begin to cover the outrageous power the Reclaimer could deliver to the battle by itself.

Meanwhile Kylo Ren himself was tracking down the droid and the information it contained. If he did not have it already. She smiled as she finished her tactical analyse. In a battle of attrition like this. There could only be one way it ended.

Still it would not do to get complacent, she admonished herself. Even if the battle was almost a certain victory. It did not mean that Dameron or someone else could not kill her before they were killed in turn.

With that sobering thought fresh in her mind she readjusted her ship and lined up her next shot to fire at the infuriating Dameron.

 **Kylo Ren - POV**

Kylo Ren turns back to Rey, his hand still on her face. After a moment's consideration. He makes his decision. One that he knows could be the crucial decision of this whole war.

"Pull the division out. Forget the droid. We have what we need." He commands as he waves his hand across Rey's face one final time and watches as her frozen body is realised from the force status and falls limply to the ground.

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 **Authors Note**

 **I found out while writing this chapter that aerial combat is incredibly hard to write. At least I found it much more difficult to write then other forms of combat. With that in mind I hope that everyone enjoyed the scene I tried to create and if they have any advice on how to improve the fighter combat and battles. I would appreciate heading it. Especially as it will feature heavily in the future of this story.**

 **Cheers. Thanks for reading.**


	13. Chapter 13 - Battle of Takodana: Part 3

**Author's Note**

 **Apologies for the delay. I had planned to upload this chapter earlier. But Christmas time tends to force loads of obligations on you in your spare time. On that not I am not sure how often I can update during Christmas and New Year. But I will do my best and still welcome you to read and review.**

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 **Rhyming With Oranges: Thanks for your compliments on my aerial combat description and the story in general.**

 **buzzsaw935: Glad to hear that you are beginning to come around to the First Order. Like you I thought that it was a simple rehash of the Empire and a scapegoat for the writers to hit a massive reset button on the series to avoid thinking of new stories. (Or even following the legends material). So, at first I was not a fan of the First Order. However, as I read the background of the group from Admiral Sloane and the flight into the Unknown Regions to the lives of Cardinal and Phasma etc. I began to love their story. As a supporter of the Empire from the start it also showed me that the Rebels have not really won their 'heroic' victory. That both suited me as a realistic ending and one that suited me personally. So, I am glad that my OC and story has managed to change your opinion of them as well. Also, I will take your suggestion of the pairing into account.**

 **TishaLiz: I am glad you picked up that bit in that last part of the previous chapter. It was vague but as you caught, it had hidden deeper meaning. However as for whether or not that particular pairing will happen, I will leave that as a surprise. Thanks, about your comments on my aerial combat scene and how they were able to accurately paint the scene. I re-wrote that countless times trying to make that kind of situation as accurate as I could make it. It was just hard to make it equally technical, tactical and emotional. In addition, thanks for your suggestions on the pairing between Kuvira and Kylo Ren. I have added some of that in this chapter and I hope that you will enjoy it.**

 **Setress: Thanks for your compliments of the aerial battle. I have taken the next major stage of development between Kylo Ren and Kuvira in this chapter. I am trying to meet the increasing demand of more of their pairing. While at the same time trying to keep true to who they are as individual people at the same time. I hope that it meets your expectations.**

 **Guest: Thanks for your review and your support. I already have a plan in mind about the interaction between Kuvira and Rey. I have thought long and hard about the different scenario's and I think I have managed to get a great interaction between them in the future. I just need to get them into the scene of their first meeting and I will go from there.**

 **Gilyflower: Thank you for the review and your compliments about my OC. I am glad that I have managed to avoid making Kuvira like the typical OC's you mentioned. I am trying to make her a realistic commander with skills and brilliant military skill but with flaws and deeper development that will hopefully be conveyed in this chapter. I have been trying to avoid wish-fulfilment storylines, so I am very glad to hear that you like Kuvira as an OC for this story.**

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 **Chapter 13 – Battle of Takodana. Part 3**

 **Takodana – Maz's castle courtyard.**

 **Finn – POV**

The black-marked x-wing swooped down again, firing his cannons and sending red energy landing towards his enemy. This resulted in exploding another enemy vessel before swing around to just barely dodge the blaster bolts that were send at his engines from the black TIE fighter just behind him.

Finn fired his blaster and before he could even see if he had hit his target, he threw himself back behind his improvised cover as another explosion shattered remaining masonry in the already ruined courtyard. As the ground stopped shaking and the sound and heat of the fiery explosion died away he chanced a look over the rim of the rubble mound he was sheltering behind. The explosion had been another fighter coming crashing back to earth and exposing into scrap metal. Another victim of the vicious battle that was illuminating the sky with green and red fire.

From the looks of the wreckage, the fighter that had almost crashed down on top of him was a TIE fighter. He could see the remains of the solar wings strewn about the courtyard. There was no sign of the central body of the fighter. He could only assume that it had been vaporised in the crash and explosion. Along with all remaining traces of the unfortunate pilot that had been at her helm.

But the First Order pilot would not be going to the afterlife without company. Even he watched a x-wing was hurtling into the side of Maz's castle, trailing flames and smoke all the way. As he watched it smashed into the side of the castle and erupted into a ball of fire. The flames were soon smothered as the side of the castle that it had collided with came crashing down to the ground as the structure took one too many blows. Even as he watched he saw several combatants of both the pirates and stormtroopers get crushed as the structure came down on their heads.

At least he hoped they were crushed. As strange as that thought was. He was certain that a quick death like that was better then being trapped under the tons of rubble until force knew when. Left to either die a slow death from their injuries or even worse, die of thirst or suffocation.

He sincerely doubted that in this system with the usual clientele would waste time and resources getting their competition and/or enemies out of the smoking rubble.

He shook himself out of his morbid thoughts as Han grabbed him by the shoulder and pulled him back behind their cover as a series of blaster bolts slammed into the rock and mortar that had once been a wall. Han hissed in pain as the sudden movement made his injured legs flare up in pain once more. He levelled a glare at Finn that clearly said something along the lines of 'pay attention, you laserbrain!'

Chewbacca growled his agreement with Han's unspoken reprimand as he turned back to fire his bow caster at the enemy. Whether that enemy was the First Order stormtroopers or the pirates and smugglers that were firing at anyone and everyone around them, Finn could not say.

Finn returned with an expression that conveyed his response just as clearly as 'sorry, my bad.'

But then he turned back to fire at the troopers that had moved closer to their position and sent more bolts at them. But he missed as the troopers ducked back behind their own improvised cover and all he did was chip pieces off the rock.

Then he was forced to take shelter yet again as they returned fire. Even as he crouched behind the rubble he saw another x-wing come plummeting out of the sky and smash into the previously glassy surface of the lake. A geyser of water, (almost as high as the remaining castle tower) shot up into the sky in a perfect column. Before a TIE fighter flew through it in its mad dash to escape the pursuing x-wing. The impact of the two ships sent the water slashing over Han, Finn and Chewie. The latter of which roared in annoyance as his fur was matted.

Finn honestly thought they had more important issues to worry about right now. But clearly the Wookie had different priorities. Maybe it was a cultural thing for the giant furballs?

But then again this might be a weekly thing for him and Han.

"Pull back to the tree line!" Came the shout of the storm trooper commander.

The order carried through the cacophony of battle and made its way into Finn's earshot. That had unmistakeably come from the First Order unit commander. He was ordering a retreat?!

Finn could not fathom what he had just heard. The troopers had numerical superiority on the ground over the three of them and the remaining criminal elements from the castle. Most of the residents had bolted for their ships or the forest as soon as the x-wings had appeared, and the TIE squadron was now distracted by the battle.

He should not have been surprised. They called themselves 'spacers of fortune' after all. And there was no fortune to be made in this battle.

Regardless it now meant that the First Order had an almost overwhelming advantage in numbers on the ground. The only reason the fight was still going on was that the lines had been so scattered during the initial x-wing attack, that no-one was sure just where the enemy was.

And in the sky the ambush from above and the arrival of new TIE reinforcements, meant that the battle in the air would soon be over as well. True the Resistance x-wings were putting up a great fight. Taking down two TIE's for each x-wing that was destroyed. But the advantage of numbers and the TIE pilots own impressive skill proved that this battle would only end one way.

After that the First Order would have the run of the castle and could cart them away for interrogation, torture and likely execution. Not necessarily in that particular order.

So why name of the Force had that commander called a retreat?!

Finn thought he must had heard wrong. But even as he rose from cover to fire again he saw that the troopers were indeed pulling back. They were slowly retreating from the shattered remains of the courtyard and heading for the tree line on the west side where they had landed their transports and shuttle.

And then, out of breath, he turned to face the forest line that the enemy soldiers were retreating too. And then he saw something that made his heart shatter

There, on the outer most reaches of the treeline he saw a dark shadow; walking with a calm serenity that blazoned rage and evil far and wide.

'Kylo Ren'. Finn though as he felt his blood turn to ice in his veins as he remembered the last encounter he had with the terrifying dark warrior. It was something that he still had nightmares about. In the rare moments since Jakku that he had been able to sleep.

But that was not the sight that caused his heart to almost stop. It was the sight of Kylo Ren carrying Rey's clearly unconscious body in his arms to his shuttle. Even as he watches, Kylo Ren started walking up the ramp and into the depths of his ship.

Han saw it too and was clearly rocked by the sight in front of them as they both stared at Rey being abducted by Kylo Ren. Cleary Rey had come to mean more to Han then Finn had realised, based on the degree of shock and pain on his face as he watched the scene.

But he had no time to consider that now as his brain turned abruptly from survival mode to instinctive protectiveness.

"NO! REY!" He shouted as he heroically (and stupidly) ran toward the shuttle through laser blasts and explosions that the retreating soldiers sent his way. He heard Han and Chewie shout/roar at him to come back as Han hauled himself upright with his arms due to his legs. He also heard them add many of their additional unflattering names for him as they called him back. But he paid them no notice as he continued to run forward. In any other situation, he would have been amazed at how brave he was being and how fast he was running. But he was no match for the forces of fate clearly arrayed against him.

Kylo Ren disappeared with Rey into the shuttle which almost immediately began to take off from the ground and rise into the sky. Even as he watched a trio of TIE fighters broke off from the engagement and formed a defensive formation around the shuttle. Within moments the black winged shuttle was blasting off into the atmosphere while Finn irrationally chases it, screaming in desperation as he watched his partner, friend and only anchor he had forged in this new life of his vanish before his eyes.

 **Kuvira – POV**

Kuvira's lip had curled slightly into a small smile as she had downed another of the Resistance x-wings. Sending it streaking into the already burning portion of the forest around the lake. If the pilot had not been killed in the moment of impact. The explosion of the fuel tank that erupted from the green foliage certainly finished the job for her.

However, that smile faded as she was forced to dodge yet another close barrage for turbo lasers sent at her TIE fighter from Poe Dameron's iconic black x-wing. She barrel-rolled to the left and brought her TIE around to regain the altitude that had been lost during her pursuit of the no deceased x-wing pilot.

However, as she brought her TIE level again and quickly reassessed the battle, she allowed her smile to reassert itself on her face.

The battle was almost over. Soon it would be as obvious to the Resistance pilots as it was to her.

One by one their pilots had fallen, and now there were less then eight of them left in the sky. True they had wrecked a grievous toll on her own pilots and nearly two dozen TIE fighters were nothing but smoking ruins smouldering in the lake, trees or the castle courtyard. And more importantly, those replaceable machines were piloted by men and women that she had personally trained and flown into battle beside them. Their loss hurt her deeply.

But she was an Admiral of the First Order. And as an Admiral, she was expected to accept and take the costs necessary to achieve victory. The loss of her pilots and colleagues, while painful to her were necessary sacrifices to achieve the victory on Takodana. It was not her role to ensure that all lives were saved. It was her job to ensure that those lives were spent wisely for the maximum gain and minimum loss.

She shook those feelings away. She would not insult the memory of her fallen pilots and soldiers by implying that their sacrifice was a meaningless random loss. Nor would she insult them by implying that their resolve to give their lives for the First Order was in anyway hard to make. She expected as much from every soul under her command.

And she saw that they had sold their lives dearly and soon the Resistance pilots would be hopelessly outnumbered.

Especially since they had no reinforcements coming to aid them in this battle. The Resistance x-wings were all alone and they were all the Resistance had put into this battle. In fact, it was entirely possible that this was the entirely of the Resistance fighter contingent in the entire galaxy. The Resistance was horrifically underfunded after all.

In contrast the First Order had hundreds of fighters that they could call upon from both the Finalizer and the Reclaimer in orbit. And unless the Resistance pilots could destroy two hundred fighters each. The battle was decided.

Or at least that had been her thinking, until she noticed that her fighter squadron was breaking off from the battle and heading into the higher atmosphere. At first she thought there were performing the G-37 manoeuvre and were forming up and gaining altitude to exercise it correctly. But as she watched she saw that they had taken a standard formation (with the exception of the evasions from the stubborn x-wing pilots) and were heading on an out of system path.

Frustrated at the unplanned and unwelcome behaviour of her pilots she took her own TIE fighter out of the combat and engaged the thrusters to catch up with her squadron. She may had wanted to continue the battle to its final victory. But she was not so deluded that she thought she could single-handedly take on the remaining seven x-wings by herself.

She pulled her TIE out of the battle and performed evasive action until she re-joined her squadron's formation and the x-wings hah broken off their pursuit and returned to the surface.

At the same time, she activated her communication with her squadron leader as she tried to get her temper under control at the unexplained withdrawal of her pilots. When the link opened she did not give commander Pyre the chance to speak first.

"Commander Pyre. I advise you to have a phenomenally good explanation as to why you have ordered the squadron to break off the engagement without my orders and have turned an assured victory into a possible devastating defeat?" She asked calmly, still remembering the BB droid on the surface. But Pyre could clearly hear the ice in her voice that hid the simmering fury beneath her Admiral's mask. And he was equally aware that his life might very well depend on the answer he gave.

"Admiral, forgive me, I assumed you knew." He started before trailing off hesitantly. But he had captured Kuvira's interest.

"Continue Commander." She ordered. She could almost hear the sound of Pyre gulping down his nervousness before he continued.

"Lord Ren has commanded the division to withdraw to the fleet and to begin preparations for the hyperspace jump back to Starkiller Base." Pyre stammered out. Kuvira's interest in the developments on the ground returned with increasing anticipation.

"Has he retrieved the droid and its data, Commander?" She inquired. However, the long pause between her question and the commanders answer did not fill her with optimism.

"I do not know Admiral. He merely reported that the droid was no longer relevant and relayed the orders to pull our forces of Takodana." Pyre replied.

Kuvira was silent for a moment. Then she keyed the com channel again. "Maintain course and continue to follow current orders unless the are countermanded by myself. Do you copy Commander?" She relayed. Once she had his acknowledgment she cut the connection and keyed a new com transition to Kylo Ren's Upsilon shuttle. Before long the blue tinged hologram of Kylo Ren appeared on her TIE fighter holoprojector.

"Lord Ren. I am told that you have ordered our forces to retreat on the cusp of victory on Takodana. While details have been unclear I trust this means that you have the data and or droid in your possession?" She stated directly. She was not in the mood for their usual pleasantries now that she knew he had been solely responsible for robbing her of an almost secured victory over the Resistance and the galaxy's criminal element.

True she was aware that a battle was not the war. And as an Admiral it was her job to focus on the war. That did not mean however that she could not be annoyed at a battle having been fought and abandoned for possibly nothing to show from it.

Kylo Ren observed her through his mask and after a moment he responded to her terse question. "The droid is no longer relevant Admiral. I have the data that we seek, and it will be in our possession within a few hours." He stated flatly.

Kuvira raised her eyebrow in an expression that conveyed both suspicion and disbelief. "You will need to explain further Lord Ren. You say that you have the data, yet it is not within our possession yet. Do you have the data to Skywalker or do you not?"

Kylo Ren visible tensed at the tone of voice that he was being address with. Even if his face could not be seen his stance took on a clearly defensive and aggressive stance. "I have captured the Jakku local girl. She has seen the map and she has the necessary information we require. Once I have her on Starkiller, I will obtain the information directly. We will have Skywalker's location with the day and with that total victory all but assured in this war, Admiral." He replied, his tone leaving no doubt that he considered this conversation closed and not up for debate.

Kuvira stared at the hologram of the dark warrior as her mind raced through the ramifications of this sudden situation. On the one hand it is possible that all would turn out as Kylo Ren said. She had seen him rip vital information directly from the minds of their enemies many times. She knew that it could be done. And if the girl had seen the map then it was possible that they could get what they needed without having to chase the droid any further.

However, this plan relied on the fact that Kylo Ren was trusting this entire strategy on the assumption that he could glean the correct and intact information from the mind of an unremarkable desert rat. Instead of the secure date files of a droid.

A droid that was also being left to return to the Resistance now that the First Order was abandoning the attack on Takodana. So, the Resistance would soon have the information as well. That though alone made her want to order their forces to return to the battle immediately and not to stop until the Resistance was driven off the planet and the droid was either scrap or captured.

But that might lead to a conflict of orders between her and Kylo Ren. And even she was not sure what the result would be from that. Like Darth Vader in the Empire, Kylo Ren's rank within the First Order was rather unclear. In theory Kylo Ren had no official rank within the First Order and could therefore be ordered around by the lowliest stormtrooper.

In practice, as Supreme Leader Snoke's apprentice, enforcer and possible chosen successor. He held the power (officially or not) of a prince. That was the whole reason that he had been able to issue the retreat order without anyone thinking to confirm it with an official officer or herself. And she was not eager to test the strength of the First Order command structure by issuing opposing orders in the middle of such a critical situation.

Her musings only lasted a few seconds and afterwards she focused on the hologram again. "Deposit your prisoner in the brig aboard the Finalizer. I will be coming aboard momentarily so meet me in the command conference room to discuss this further." She stated. And with that she cut the connection before Ren could object or possibly deny her orders.

She engaged her thrusters and her TIE shot forward to the Resurgent Star destroyer hanging in the orbit of Takodana along side the Reclaimer. She relayed orders for her pilots to return to their respective hangers and continue with their assigned duties. With that she turned off her com channels and spent the time before her arrival on the Finalizer regaining her composure and reviewing the situation. It was a routine she had used many times when dealing with some of her more incompetent colleagues and subordinates.

She had a feeling she was going to need her trademark stoicism in the near future.

 **Han - POV**

"He took her! Did you see that? He took her. She's gone!" Finn gestures frantically at Han for the fifth or sixth time as if he had not heard him properly before.

"Yeah, yeah, I know..." He said as he was carried past the emotionally crippled former stormtrooper while flung over Chewie shoulders like baggage to prevent more strain or damage to his blasted legs.

Han was thankfully thrown over Chewie shoulder facing frontwards rather then backwards. It allowed him to maintain some form of dignity and allowed him to observe the situation as the Wookie moved toward a Resistance transport landing in the debris alongside the docked x-wings within the smoking ruins of what once had been a glorious castle. BB-8 rolled up beside him, waiting for the transport to open up.

He knows instantly what is going to happen next. He may not have the force but he has always had his intuition. It had been a small subtle feeling that told him that something bad was about to happen. Luke of course would say it was some small manifestation of the force. And old Obi-Wan would say 'there is no such thing as luck'. He just called it good survival instincts.

And right now his was telling him to run (or crawl) as far and as fast as he could away from this place right now. Chewie could call him a coward. He could call him a wimp if he wanted too. But he would take that label if it meant he did not have to face this situation.

Finally, the transport door opens. And standing there is Leia.

She sees Han and clearly from her stunned expression she was not expecting anymore then he had been looking forward to it. A silent beat, as husband and wife were reunited for the first time in years. In the smoke and embers of battle. Ironically similar to how they first meet on the first Death Star's detention level during a fire fight. But unlike that situation, which was filled with insults and jabs at each other. In the here and now neither one says a word.

Then C-3PO walks out from the transport, into the field and makes a bee line for Han and the Wookie holding him. "Goodness! Han Solo! It is I, C-3P0!" The droid stops in front of Han who was forced to look down from the impressive height of Chewbacca's shoulder at the droid.

"You probably don't recognize me because of the red arm." The droid said cheerfully while waving the scarlet appendage in front of the crippled smuggler.

Han looked at the droid and then at Leia, and then back to the droid. And he suddenly found himself wishing that Admiral Kuvira had shot in him the head instead.

 **Kylo Ren - POV**

Within the blue swirling tunnel of hyperspace. Aboard the Finalizer within the main conference room located just beneath the bridge of the Resurgent Class Star Destroyer. An Admiral stood directly facing a warrior of the Dark Side, and between them was enough tension to crack durusteel.

Kylo Ren had just come from the brig where he had deposited the Jakku girl after leaving strict instructions that she be kept sedated and manacled until they reached Starkiller Base and was able to be transferred to a proper interrogation cell.

Already he was focusing and preparing himself for the act of ripping the information about the map from her mind. It was not a particularly difficult thing to do. He had done it so many times to Resistance members and various enemies that he could properly do it in his sleep. But with information as important as this he needed to set his own mental house in order before he entered hers.

And that important act of mental preparation was not being helped by the feelings that were being provoked by this meeting. And as he stared directly into the Admiral's piercing emerald eyes, he felt his serenity slip a little more. At the same time he felt his emotions channelling the dark side which even now was pulsing within this room with vibrating power so palpable it was almost visible to the naked eye.

He was snapped out of his personal thoughts when Kuvira broke the silence.

"I want you to explain what has happened on that planet, Lord Ren" She commanded. Her voice was full of steel and he could sense both instinctively and through the force that she was working hard to maintain her composure.

But he was Kylo Ren and he would not be intimidated. Not even by Grand Admiral Kuvira. "You are more than able to grasp what happened on Takodana, Admiral." He whispered in response.

Kuvira nodded slowly. "Yes, but explain it to me in your own words." She 'asked'.

Kylo Ren paused for a moment, then he began his summary. "During my pursuit of the droid I encountered the Jakku girl that was acting as some form of bodyguard for the BB unit. When I subdued her I searched her mind to learn where the droid was. Once I did so, I learned that she had seen the map to Skywalker previously. I then knew that we had the information we need right in front of us. So I brought her back with me so that we can gain it and win this war Admiral. Is there any part of that you are having trouble with?" He asked sardonically as he took a step towards Kuvira.

Kuvira was in no way intimidated as she began her own summary. "Not at all Lord Ren. Let me run through it again just to make sure I am able to grasp the intricacies of your plan." She said with an unusual level of sarcastic emotion that was almost never displayed from the stoic woman.

"You managed to corner the girl and you learned that she was potential resource in us gaining the information we need. In the learning of this fact you captured her and brought her into our custody. I commend you for that act wholeheartedly." She said as she took a step towards him before she continued.

"And then you ordered our entire force to pull out and abandon the planet. In so doing you ensured that we lost an additional number of pilots who were forced to make a running retreat while dodging blaster and cannon fire from our enemies. You also ensured that the criminals and rebel 'heroes' Han Solo and Chewbacca were able to escape to the Resistance, despite one of them being crippled precisely to prevent escaping. You also ensured that rather than us claiming victory on the planet and locating and/or destroying the BB droid. The Resistance is now in control of the planet and even now may be in possession of that droid." She said, her voice becoming biting yet still remain in a calm volume.

"With that in mind the Resistance will likely have the information before you are able to wrench it from the mind of the girl and have Skywalker in their possession before we do. In summation, Lord Ren your actions could cost the First Order dearly." She finished.

Kylo Ren felt his anger spike at her tone but also at himself as he found it hard to deny any of the Admiral's logic. He realised that his excitement at seeing the information right in front of him had lead him to make a foolish error in judgment. He had been swept away with the thought that this girl was the key to finding that cursed old man. The key to finally doing what his grandfather had done and finally slay his treacherous old master with his lightsaber. But he had made a mistake in forgetting all the other factors of the mission to Takodana. It was a mistake Darth Vader would certainly never have made. He mentally admonished himself. But he would be damned if he showed weakness in front of one of the few people he truly respected in the galaxy.

He stepped closer to Kuvira and allowed his voice to drop a few degrees. "Are you questioning my judgment or competence, Admiral?" He asked dangerously

Kuvira never blinked and took a step forward of her own. "I am questioning your judgement regarding this Jakku girl. You have never been one to make such an error of judgment and yet due to this girl you have made a possibly devastating one." She paused.

"Why? What is it in this girl that caused you to experience such a lapse? What is your sudden interest in her?" She demanded as her eyes narrowed.

Kylo Ren did not know what promoted him to say the next words but he said them before he could prevent it. "You are strangely focused on my interactions with this girl, instead of the location of the data, Admiral Kuvira. I wonder, if this matter is motivated through some form of jealousy." He threw out.

Silence filled the room as they stared at each other in surprise at what had just been hinted at. It was only then that both of them realised as they had each taken several steps toward the other. Just how close their faces were in that moment.

Kuvira's eyes were flashing dangerously and her posture stiffened to the point that she could be impersonating statue made of cortosis. He almost felt the room grow hotter as if the dark side was manifesting itself on the dangerous emotions that were suddenly present in then room. Then again it might have been result of his rabidly increasing heartbeat sending blood to his face under his mask.

But he also noticed another thing. That underneath the Admiral's piercing emerald eyes. Her face was becoming redder and her eyes had become slightly diluted.

He could also sense her through the Force. He felt her fury at what he had just insinuated to her. He felt her pride burning at his suggestion that she was allowing personal emotions to control her military strategy. He felt her annoyance that she was trying and failing to keep the obvious physical reaction to his words under control. He felt her desperation to maintain control of the situation and not let this spiral into something that could threaten the unity of the First Order.

But buried beneath all of that, he sensed something else. He sensed…curiosity?

But before he could press deeper into that particular discovery he was forced to return to the physical mundane world as he heard the Admiral begin talking to him in a voice as sharp it could probably cut diamonds.

"We have just come from the heat of battle Lord Ren and we might soon stand on the cusp of victory in the battle with Luke Skywalker. It is an, emotional moment for all of us so I am going to forget what you just implied to me." She said stonily. "And rest assured Lord Ren if such a situation were to happen I am not so weak as to hide behind petty jealousies when faced with a threat to something I want." She finished.

But before Kylo Ren could consider the possible meaning in her words she spun on her heel and headed for the door to the bridge. As the door opened and her storm trooper guards fell into position at her sides, she stopped for a moment and turned her head to the side to give a final parting word.

"I expect you to use all your power to ensure you gain the information from that girl the instant we arrive at Starkiller base Lord Ren. And I also expect you to remember, that killing Luke Skywalker is a separate battle, a bonus. We, the both of us, must focus on winning the war."

With that she walked out and the door hissed shut.

Kylo Ren stood in the empty conference chamber staring both into space and into the force. He found himself contemplating the Admiral's words. Both about his focus on the mission and his issues with Skywalker over the goals of the First Order.

He remembered the conversation with his master. It was sentiment that had crippled Darth Vader at the crucial moment. It was his love for his son Luke that had caused him to throw away everything he had ever worked for and cast the Empire he had helped build into ruin.

Was he in danger of committing the same mistake? Was his obsession with killing Luke threatening all he had worked for in the First Order?

And then his words to the Admiral about jealously. Where had that come from?!

He had reacted in anger to her accusations about his conduct on Takodana. But why had he chosen to retaliate with that statement? And more to the point. Why did he feel such pronounced shame at the suggestion that he had failed the First Order? That he had failed her?

Maybe, just maybe.

He shook the thought away. Both mentally and physically as he shook his helmeted head in anger. Sentiment again! It was truly the curse of his bloodline!

He had more important matters to attend to. And the Admiral was right. He had information to retrieve and retrieve fast before his mother's…..before General Organa's pathetic little band of insects got hold of the droid. If they had not already.

He swept out of the room with his black cloak billowing out behind him as he made his way to his chambers. He needed to meditate on this.

And maybe some other things.


	14. Chapter 14 - The Admiral and Scavenger

**TishaLiz: Thank you for the review as always. I agree that the choice to pull of Takodana with just Rey as a captive was an incredibly bad decision. It was going to be a problem keeping up with Kuvira's military skills if she was the one who ordered it. Thankfully Kylo Ren's impulsiveness allowed a legitimate reason for the First Order to withdraw and the rebels to escape. It has been hard at times finding ways for Kuvira to maintain her status as a military genius like Thrawn and yet allowing the 'heroes' to survive due to more than just protagonist powers. Sorry this was not out before the New Year but you know what this time of year is like. In regards to Han's legs, well it will affect some things in the story but the Star Wars universe has some really advanced medical technology, so we will see. I also thought about removing Kylo's helmet for the tension scene but I decided that was moving too fast and too obviously for these particular individuals. And given how much he wants to be Vader if figured he would only take it off when needed and that meeting did not qualify. Anyway, hope you enjoy this new chapter.**

 **thasinger123: Thanks for the review. I make it a point to respond to reviews so if you have any questions or suggestions feel free to let me know.**

 **ex-ellent: I knew that the romance path was going to be a bit cliché. That is why I asked for readers to let me know whether to add it in or to not bother. Everyone who responded was in favour of the romance so I added it. Admittedly it makes the writing harder while trying to keep true to the nature of these two characters but it also adds a new dynamic in the story and it gives another option to those who are not a fan of Rey or the 'relationship' between her and Kylo Ren in the movies. In regards to you point that this has followed the movies so far. Well a lot of OC fanfic's do the same and I still thoroughly enjoy them. Also given how fast the events take place in the 7** **th** **and 8** **th** **movies there is not a lot of time for other things to happen. Still you have reminded me that it is important to explore original events. I have some plans for diverging from the film in upcoming chapters so I hope you will enjoy them.**

 **Chapter 14 : The Admiral and the Scavanger**

 **Starkiller Base – Holding Cell**

 **Rey - POV**

Rey slowly crawled her way back to consciousness and opens her eyes as she tries to fight through the disorientation swirling in her skull. As her eyes adjust to the dim light she begins to take stock of her surroundings. She is in an angled, upright restraining rig that looked very much like it was designed to be unpleasant for the restrained individual.

She recognised this place. She had seen similar rooms during her many days of crawling in the bowels of wrecked imperial star destroyers on Jakku. Though clearly this one was not an abandoned ruin and was clearly state of the art. Which was defiantly not good news for her.

As she turned her head she heard/felt another person in the cell with her. When she looked over she was startled to see Kylo Ren, mask in place, was standing there like a terrifying dark spectre in the darkened corner of the interrogation room, silently observing her.

Once Rey got over her shock she asked the question that was foremost in her mind. "Where am I?"

For a second she thinks that he will not bother answering her. But after a few seconds he does. "You're my guest." He states simply as if it should have been obvious.

She glances at her manacled arms and legs and considers making a sarcastic remark about guests being allowed to leave as they please. After all if he was going to kill her he would have already done it. But she thinks better of it as she is not so confident in her theory that she wanted to test it.

As the memories of the attack on Takodana came flooding back she asks her next question urgently. "Where are the others?" She demanded, and could almost imagine him scoffing under his mask.

"You mean the murderers, traitors and thieves you call friends? You'll be relieved to hear that I have no idea." He says flatly but with a definite hint of mockery in his voice. As he finishes speaking he reaches out with the Force and studies her thoughts. She was clearly fearful but that would have been obvious to anyone attuned to the Force or not. But she was also curious and a subtle but definite current of vengefulness.

"You still want to kill me." He stated, and it was clearly not a question.

Rey's eyes take on a flash of anger and indignation that had not been there in the opening stages of this interrogation. "That happens when you're being hunted by a creature in a mask!" She practically snarls.

Kylo considers her for a moment as if he was considering a particularly difficult choice that was laid out before him. Then after a few seconds he reached up to his face and activated his mask's mechanisms to unlock and then he proceeded to lift his mask of his head. Rey was stunned. She was not sure what she had expected the real him to look like under his mask. But it had not been this. She had expected something along the lines of a horrifically deformed monster with eyes that blazed of evil and a mouth that was permanently into a diabolical smirk.

Instead she was staring at a young man roughly her age or maybe a little older. His eyes were a colour of brown that she was certain she had seen somewhere before. They would have been a warm chocolate shade if they were not staring at her with a cold and remorseless gaze. His face was narrow but not gaunt with a skin tone was pale probably from being hidden beneath his mask for so much time. His long black hair was very fine and fell down to his shoulders concealing his ears. It takes a moment to get over her surprise before she regains her own mask of defiance as he menacingly steps forward.

"Tell me about the droid." He demands. And with that tone of voice Rey begins to remember what her situation is and feels her resolve beginning to crumble.

"He's a BB unit with a selenium drive and a thermal hyper scan vindicator….." She begins but he soon interrupts her.

"He's carrying a section of a navigational chart. We have the rest, recovered from archives of the Empire. We need the last piece. And somehow, you convinced the droid to show it to you. You. A scavenger?"

Rey feels her body instinctively tense up and a cold feeling seeping through her stomach. 'How does he know?'

Kylo Ren takes another step closer as he remembers Admiral Kuvira's words to him on the star destroyer and remembers that he is on a tight time limit. "You know I can take whatever I want?" Trepidation flashes across Rey's eyes. Kylo Ren moves closer, his hand rising toward her. She recoils, but has nowhere to go.

Kylo Ren nearly touches her face... and they both find themselves surprised. They react to a feeling that passes between them, an energy they recognised in each other. And then it's gone. Adversaries again. Rey can't move and she quietly strains in agony, trying desperately to resist Ren's probing. Kylo Ren was once again rummaging through her memories and feelings in an act of utter violation.

"You're so lonely... so afraid to leave..." He states in a quiet voice. "At night, desperate to sleep... you imagine an ocean. I see it - I see the island..." he mutters as tears stream down her face as she resists. She tries to break free, but she can't budge from her position on the rack.

Suddenly Kylo Ren's previous impassive demeanour is gone as he uncovers more of her feelings. "And Han Solo. You feel like he's the father you never had. He would've disappointed you." He almost snarls.

His hand still on her face, and her eyes become fierce through the agony. "Get out of my head" She grinds out through gritted teeth but this just makes Kylo lean closer. "I know you've seen the map. It's in there... and now you'll give it to me. Don't be afraid. I feel it too." He states with utter certainty.

"I'm not giving you anything." She retorts.

"We'll see." He peers into her eyes intensely. She meets his gaze. On Ren's face his confidence begins to melt away. He has slammed up against a barrier in her mind. He looks less certain by the moment as Rey seems to grow in strength. He pushed hard with his mind, but the probe went nowhere. The ferocity of confrontation builds until it hits critical mass.

But what Kylo Ren did not realise until it was too late was that the bridge that he had created between their minds worked both ways.

A look of amazement replaces the fear on Rey's face as she discovers herself in his mind. She finds herself passing through his memories and a speed that seemed only to be rivalled by hyperspace travel. She witnesses his years of training with the use of the Force and his skills with a lightsaber, not full understanding what she was seeing but drawing that information into her own mind. She also sees something else she feels Kylo Ren's surprise as he realises what is happening and she senses his attempts to shut the bridge between them.

But before he can, she sees what is in his mind.

"... You... you're afraid... that you will never be as strong as... Darth Vader!" She whispers belatedly.

Kylo Ren pulls back his hand from her face as if she was on fire. At the same time the shock that reverberated through him at those words forced the link between their minds to shatter like glass against stone. She is released and breathes a sigh of relief as he stumbles back from her, clearly rattled to the core as he stared intently into her eyes.

She didn't know it at the time, but he was observing a change in her eyes. Something behind them, in her stare and in her posture had changed. Whatever it was, he wasn't sure. But it was unmistakably powerful.

Before she could say another world he turned on his heel, re donned his mask and swept from the room, his black cloak snapping as if in indignation. He paused only to send a blast of invisible power directly into her, forcing her back against the rack she remained fastened too.

And with that he departed as the door slammed shut again, leaving Rey alone.

She signed as she closed her eyes, hoping that she could now rest and gather herself and her thoughts on what had just happened. And then once she had recuperated a bit she could focus on finding a way out of this seemingly hopeless situation.

But she was not going to be given her wish quite yet. Less than ten seconds after Kylo Ren had left the room.

The door opened.

 **Kuvira - POV**

Kuvira was actually forced to press herself against the wall as Kylo Ren stalked past her after he exited the interrogation cell that the Jakku girl had been placed in. She watched in silence as he hurried past her without uttering a word. She was not even certain he had even noticed she was there.

For reasons she did not want to consider, that bothered her more than it should have.

She had come to speak to him about the upcoming attack on the Resistance base. Though it had been part of the overall strategy. She almost could not believe it when the communication and intelligence officers had informed her only an hour ago. The Resistance had understandably been desperate to know the origin of the apocalyptic energy blast that had turned the Hosnian System and all of its lifeforms into space dust. And so they had sent a recon ship to investigate Starkiller base.

That, in of itself, was not surprising. Tracking the origin for the blast that had been witnessed across the galaxy would have been child's play. It was inevitable that once the weapon had been fired the entire galaxy would soon know the location and existence of Starkiller base.

What had been surprising was that the recon ship the Resistance had used to scout out the planet had been careless enough to let itself be tracked back to the Ileenium system! For an organisation that she had spent years trying to ferret out of hiding, it almost beggared belief!

In most other situations she would consider the possibility that it was some form of trap. But after carefully considering the military situation and the data provided from the Ministries of Logistics and Intelligence, she realised it was no trap.

The Resistance had revealed themselves. Once again she almost could not believe it. But as she had reminded herself many times while monitoring delta source. It only took one slip up.

It was like Life Day had come early and she had almost broken out into wild laughter in the planetary command centre. Thankfully she had reigned herself in and simply allowed a smile to escape her usual stoicism.

After making the necessary orders, she had permitted Hux to be the one to inform the Supreme Leader and get final authorisation on the upcoming attack on the system. Although that was more an act of keeping the Supreme Leader informed as Kuvira had all the necessary authority to order the attack on her own. Neither the Supreme Leader nor the First Order had any use for commanders who could not show initiative.

The 1st Fleet (her fleet) was ready and waiting for the order. All that remained was to coordinate their own reconnaissance craft in the area in order to lock down the specific location of their base. Once they had that, they would move into crush the Resistance in a single stroke.

She had been informed of Kylo Ren's location upon her inquiry and had gone to see if he had obtained the map to Skywalker yet, as he was not responding to his com link.

She had almost been at the door when he had exited and stalked past. She was confused but intuitive enough to know that he was not in the mood to talk military strategy. And if he did have the map he was likely going to inform the Supreme Leader.

As she turned back to the cell door he had just left. She allowed some of her own curiosity to force its way to her mind. She walked up to the door and entered the cell.

For a long moment she and the clearly tired Jakku scavenger girl simply observed each other as Kuvira stepped into the cell and stood a few paces away from her left side, allowing the girl to turn her head and face her directly.

Then after a few seconds of silence, Kuvira broke it. "What is your name?" She asked simply

For a few seconds the girl simply looked her. Then she started to giggle, which eventually became a full on laugh. Kuvira raised an eyebrow, of all the reactions she had expected, that was not one of them. She began to wonder if Lord Ren had been so forceful in his interrogation that her mind had snapped.

But then the girl seemed to get a grip. "Sorry, but of all the questions I thought you would try to torture out of me, I didn't expect that one". She said while still giggling.

Kuvira realised that the reaction had not been laughter but some form of hysteria. "I have no intention of torturing you. You have nothing that I want. I am simply enquiring." She replied flatly.

The girl glared at her in response. "You can stop with the lies. I know you, Kylo Ren and the rest of the First Order want the map from BB-8!" She snapped

"That is Lord Ren's prerogative, not mine." Kuvira countered. "While it true I would like the map recovered or destroyed. I have no personal interest in the map and I could not careless about that pathetic coward Luke Skywalker. The mysteries of the Force are an anathema to me and beyond their practical applications I have no interest in them. My concerns are more based in the physical world. I leave the rest to the philosophers."

The scavenger girl stared at her while Kuvira studied her body language and facial twitches, which even while restrained shown through. She clearly did not think she was lying but that was countered by the fact that she felt she had no reason to trust her.

Kuvira signed "Very well then, I will take the first step. My name is Kuvira, commander of the star destroyer _Reclaimer_ , Admiral and Commander in Chief of the First Order." She said in a simple tone with no evidence of arrogance or grandstanding.

She saw a flash of recognition pass along the girls face. She had clearly heard of her. After a moment, she responded.

"I'm Rey, a scavenger from Jakku." She said reluctantly. "It's not quite as impressive as your introduction. But at least I gave a homeworld." She said snidely

Kuvira ignored the tone in Rey's voice. "I do not know what my homeworld was. At least not for a fact, beyond what is in the First Order's records. But from what I understand it was, unpleasant there." She paused. "Rather like Jakku in that regard I suppose. We have that in common, if nothing else."

Rey's brows furrowed in confusion. "You don't remember your family or planet?" She asked. Despite herself, she found herself curious about the imposing woman before her. She remembered Finn had mentioned that he was taken from a family like all stormtroopers. Did even the great Admiral Kuvira have that tragic past as well?

Kuvira shook her head with a small shrug. "I have some vague memories. Images, faces, places, scents, etc. I was given away to the First Order at a young age. When I was four, I think." She said and interrupted as she saw the indignation rise on Rey's face.

"And before you ask, no I was not 'kidnapped'. In the impoverished Outer Rim and Unknown Regions the First Order rarely needs to resort to that. I was, 'purchased'." She stated emotionlessly.

At this Rey's curiosity increased. "You were a slave? Where you parents slaves as well or here you taken from them before coming to the First Order?" She asked.

Kuvira shook her head. "It was my parents who sold me to the First Order." She clarified to Rey's shocked expression. "According to the records they were very poor and in need of funds with no ability to care for a young child. In exchange for a sum of credits I was traded to the First Order. From what little I know of Athulla. It is a common enough practice."

Rey simply stared at the woman in disbelief. She was trying to wrap her mind around the idea that someone would willingly had over their daughter for a fistful of credits, as if she was an old droid or speeder they no longer wanted. She knew from a life of living on Jakku how desperate people made strange decisions. But it was still hard to hear about it. It was made even stranger by the fact that the Admiral spoke about her parent's abandonment of her so uncaringly. In a way her apathy made sense. She had confirmed she didn't remember her parents so she had no emotional ties to them good or bad.

Rey was just thankful that she remembered her parents, if only faintly. She also remembered she needed to get back to Jakku. Because unlike the Admiral, they loved her and were coming back for her. She knew they would. She knew it.

With that in mind she refocused her suspicious gaze on the Admiral. "So why are you here? If you don't care about the map why have you come here to see me? I doubt the Grand Admiral of the First Order visits all the prisoners personally. What is so special about me?" She demanded.

Kuvira was silent for a moment. Then she answered. "Until yesterday there was nothing special about you beyond your ability to aggravate our efforts. I didn't care about you, in fact I would not have cared if you have lived or died on Takodana." She clarified as Rey's eyes narrowed at her words.

"But when Lord Ren brought you back to us, even going so far as to recall all our forces on the planet once he captured you alone. Well, that forced me to review you a bit more thoroughly." She said as Rey got the unconformable feeling as if she was being studied under glass like a bacterium.

"You, intrigue me." Kuvira summarised as if that explained everything. If Rey was confused before she was now completely mind boggled.

"Why? I'm nobody, I am just a scavenger from the Kelvine Ravine regions. You're an Admiral in charge of a massive fleet and army, what am I to you?" She asks puzzled.

Kuvira crossed her arms and leaned back on the wall of the cell as she began to relax. It was not often that she got to have such an open conversation with someone who was not under her command. "It is precisely those reasons that interest me." She replied.

"You came from quite literally nothing. Our new colonists and subjugates on Jakku have confirmed that you have survived on that hellish planet virtually unaided from an early age since your parents abandoned you there…" She was interrupted as the girl flew into a fury.

"They didn't abandon me!" She yelled. "They will be back, they will come back for me. Which is more than your parents did. Mine actually care about me so you can shut up about them!" She spat breathing heavily. She had seemingly forgotten that the person she was spitting vitriol at could easily order her executed or just kill her right now.

But Kuvira just raised her hand in a placating gesture as she gave a small nod. "As you wish." She said simply as if refusing to get dragged into an argument with a child about the existence of the angels of Iego. Clearly Rey recognised that tone and did not appreciate it.

"As I was saying. Despite your situation you managed to recover the BB droid with the map. You managed to pilot a ship that by all rights should have been scrapped years ago. You also managed to avoid me in the chase off Jakku, a feat not many have achieved…."

"That was you in that TIE?!" Rey interrupted again. "You nearly killed us!" She accused.

This time Kuvira's gaze turned cold. "And you succeeded in killing one of my pilots. You made your choice to be on that ship, Rey. If you have turned the droid over to us in the first place, you would have never been in danger and you would have received a substantial reward. Do not attempt to play the victim in this situation." Kuvira scolded.

Rey looked annoyed at the chastisement. But she had to admit the Admiral had a point. She had chosen to help BB-8, Finn and the Resistance from the get go. She leaned back and remained silent.

Kuvira nodded and continued. "After that you managed to avoid an assault from a pack of hungry Rathtars, according to our sources. And then you managed to survive a battle and an encounter with Kylo Ren. An achievement that is very rare indeed." Kuvira paused as she studied Rey again before she finished.

"Simply put Rey. These actions and achievements point to either phenomenal luck. Or immense natural talent. I am curious to see which it is." She concluded.

In the silence that followed Rey didn't know what to say. She was caught between fears at what her imprisonment might lead to. But she was also feeling pride in Kuvira's description of her. She had not been credited with much in her life up until now. And the fact that someone of such importance was providing that recognition made her feel, proud.

But then she got her head on straight and asked the question that had been burning in her mind since she had woken up. "So, what will happen to me now?" She asked.

Kuvira straightened from her leaning position. "For now you are in the custody of Lord Ren. When you have provided the information he seeks we will see. I would advise that you provide the information quickly. It will increase your chances. And believe it or not there are much worse things than Lord Ren that can be used to gain that information." She warned.

While Rey tried to look brave, the cell door opened and Nephitina walked in. She looked briefly at the restrained Rey before snapping to a salute. "Admiral." She greeted while waiting for acknowledgment.

Kuvira turned away from Rey to face the Twi'lek. "Yes Lieutenant, what is it?" She asked calmly. Rey also turns to regard the Twi'lek and she seems surprised. She had probably been told by the Resistance and the ignorant, that like the Empire before it, the First Order wanted to enslave or murder all aliens bar humans. Kuvira's mood darkened at both the memory of the Imperial policy and the blatant propaganda used by the Resistance. Still it was good to correct Rey's assumption right off the bat.

Nephitina continued. "You have two priority messages. One from the Supreme Leader and one from Commander Hask aboard the _Retribution._ " She reported dutifully.

Kuvira nodded. She turned to face Rey briefly. "Excuse me Rey, duty calls." With that she was turned and followed the Twi'lek (who also looked surprised at the Admiral's cordial tone to a mere prisoner) and shut the door behind them.

As soon as they had left Rey began working her right wrist. Using her fingers to carefully pull a small device about of her wrist wrappings. She had been crawling through damaged and crumpling machines for years. She had learned long ago the skills and necessity of keeping a backup slicer spike close in case of emergencies.

This certainly qualified as an emergency.

As she pulled out the spike she began to work the mechanisms of her wrist cuffs. Prayer to whatever cosmic force cared to listen that she would free herself before anyone came back.

 **Outside the Cell**

Kuvira listened as the message from Supreme Leader Snoke came to an end. She was not surprised but a little disappointed. The Supreme Leader had determined that they could not afford the time needed to pinpoint the location of the Resistance base in the Ileenium system.

Therefore he had ordered that the Starkiller weapon be prepared to fire at the system's star. If the weapon hit that it would cause nothing less than a supernova that would wipe out every planet in the sun's gravity sphere.

It was an effective plan and it would achieve the result needed. It would also not result in additional collateral damage as the rest of the planets in the system were uninhabited. But it lacked a finesse that military strategy required and was more again to swinging a big heavy blunt instrument at your enemy. The order had come from Snoke, but she could defiantly sense Hux's hand in this plan.

Still orders were orders and this would at least free up her fleet to be deployed elsewhere in the galaxy. She turned back to the Lieutenant. "And the message from Commander Hask?" She inquired.

Nephitina consulted her datapad before answering. "He reports that he has completed his operations on Vados and that Project Resurrection has been completed and all matters settled. He claims that you left orders to be informed of this when it was completed. He also asked if you could rendezvous with him aboard the _Retribution_." She finished

That made Kuvira's eyebrows rise in question. "For what reason?" She asked directly. Nephitina shrugged, her Lekku twitching as she did so. "He didn't say. He just claimed it was a delicate matter." The woman said.

Kuvira was puzzled. It was not a feeling she was used too.

For Hask to request her personal presence could indicate that something had gone very wrong. Project Resurrection had been given top priority. Overseen by herself, Kylo Ren and Hask directly. But Hask's message indicated that the project had been completed successfully. The fact that he had been so cagey about the reasons also hinted that whatever it was could not be communicated via holo.

She disliked this situation immediately. But with the new plan to wipe out the Resistance with the Starkiller weapon she could afford to place her fleet on a temporary standby around the planet for protection. She could also afford to travel to meet the Retribution, which was already en route to return to Starkiller base. She would be away for a few hours. Besides she had an entire army of officers and sub commanders beneath her. She did not have to constantly hold their hands.

"Very well commutate to the Commander Hask that I will be travelling to Vados to meet him. Prepare my shuttle to depart." She commanded.

Nephitina looked up from the datapad she was typing on. "Not the _Reclaimer_ Admiral?" She asked.

Kuvira shook her head. "There is no need to prep an entire Star destroyer for what should only be a brief trip. Attend to those instructions I will be along shortly." She ordered. Nephitina nodded and after a quick salute headed off down the deserted corridor.

Kuvira watched her leave for a few moments as she began to categorise her needed amendments to their overall strategy with this new plan. Then she turned back to the cell and opened the door. The next thing she saw was a metal bar swinging towards her face!

 **Rey - POV**

Rey swung her pole staff (which she had recovered from the evidence stand against the wall of the cell) at Kuvira's face the moment the door opened fully and she saw who it was.

If she could knock out the Admiral or maybe even take her hostage she could possibly escape the planet and get back to Han and Finn. And what a prize that would be for the Resistance to have Admiral Kuvira as a prisoner of war!

But first she had to escape and so she sent the staff swinging with all her might to the surprised woman's face.

But despite the surprise Kuvira was clearly not an Admiral for nothing. Acting on instinct from years of intense training she ducked out of the path of the weapon and thrust out with her right hand. Her hand gripped Rey's throat which had been left wide open with the follow through of her attack.

Rey's expression turned from triumph to shock, and then fear as Kuvira looked at her knowingly.

Then before Rey could attack again Kuvira lashed out with a kick to the torso that sent Rey hurtling back to come crashing to the floor in the centre of the cell, narrowly missing the rack she had just escaped from. The burned out slicer spike on the floor by her head explaining just how she had done it.

Rey staggered to her feet gasping for breath as she raised her staff up. Looking up in dread as she expected Kuvira to sound the alarm and call for a hundred guards. Or for her to just pull out her blaster pistol and shoot her dead right then and there.

But she did neither.

Instead Rey watched as the Admiral took off her blaster from her belt and threw it out the still open door of the cell. Then she shrugged off her black great coat and tossed it into the corner. Then as Rey watched in confusion, she closed and locked the cell door and adopted a fighting stance.

Rey's confusion soon turned to anger at what she perceived as the Admiral's arrogance and she lunged forward with her staff again.

She swung at Kuvira's feet hoping to trip her up. But the Admiral simply jumped over the metal rod and once she had landed on her feet she thrust out with a jab that connected with Rey's jaw. The girl staggered back as she felt the force of the blow and tasted blood in her mouth. But before she could do anything to stop it, Kuvira was beside her.

The Admiral took hold of the hand that managed to keep hold of the staff and wrenched it in a way that made it impossible for her to keep a grip on the weapon which was pulled out of her hands. Kuvira wasted no time in following up the disarming motion into a low sweep that took Rey's legs out from under her, and she once again fell to the cold floor.

As she looked up through her hazy vision she saw Kuvira casually lean the staff against the wall before she turned her attention back to the prone Rey lying on the ground.

Fighting through the pain in her body and calling on her rage and frustration at how badly this escape attempt was going, Rey jumped back to her feet.

She lashed out with two kicks at Kuvira mid-section. But the other woman merely stood her ground and proceeded to slap the attacks away with her forearms. Rey changed tactics by sending a lunging punch towards Kuvira's jaw. But Kuvira simply tilted her head out its path while once again slapping the basic attack to the side.

Rey tried to kick the Admiral in the shins, only for an almost identical counter attack to nullify the blow and send the leg back to its previous position.

For a moment they simply stared at each other. Rey's face an expression of shock, awe and desperation. While Kuvira's face had not changed from its typical stoic expression since the fight had begun. Further enraged by the clear lack of effort that her opponent was putting into this fight, Rey attacked again with a scream of frustration.

She tried to land a brawler style swinging punch to Kuvira's face. But the punch was so wide and obvious Kuvira could have brushed her teeth in the time it took to come near to its target. She simply ducked while she spun on her heel and used the back of her left leg to sweep Rey's extended left leg out from under her. For the third time in almost as many seconds, Rey was sent crashing to the floor.

Rey found herself once again on her back looking up at Kuvira who was standing at ease just next to her.

"Don't force it, your forcing it." Kuvira chided as if Rey was a trainee in the training room, instead of an attacking prisoner.

Snarling Rey leapt back to her feet and proceeded to send punch after punch at Kuvira's face. But just as before Kuvira, slapped them harmlessly to the side with calculated blocks and parry's.

Finally Rey sent another swinging punch at Kuvira, only for the woman to duck out of the way while spinning round to seize Rey's outstretched arm with both of her hands.

Ignoring the horror on Rey's face as she realised her mistake. Kuvira bent the arm in such a way that Rey was quickly forced to her knees in pain from the pressured joint. Just before her arm proceeded to break, Kuvira released her from the hold. But before Rey could even sigh in relief she saw a black booted leg come crashing into her sternum sending her on to her back in a way that almost forced her to fold in half as her legs shot out from her previous kneeling position.

Kuvira stood over her, ready to strike again if need be. But there was no need. Bruised and battered, the fight seemed to have leaked out of Rey by this point.

The scavenger simply lay on the cold metal floor of the cell. She was clearly fighting back tears at how clearly outmatched she was and how her escape had turned to ash in the space of thirty seconds. She just stayed were she was, and did not put up any resistance as Kuvira called for the prison guards to place her back on the rack, after scanning her to make sure she had no additional escape tools hidden.

After they left, Rey found herself once again alone with Kuvira and a newly placed guard as the Admiral put her black greatcoat back on and placed her blaster pistol back in its holster. Once that was done she turned to face Rey once more.

"After seeing your escape from your restraints I am satisfied that luck has had little to do with your previous actions. I am very impressed with your performance Rey." She complimented.

Rey could not decide if she was mocking her after the humiliating defeat she had handed to her or not. There was no mockery in the other woman's tone but she was not making any sense. "What are you talking about?" She asked through her bruised and bloody face.

Kuvira finished adjusting her blaster belt before she answered. "You have a natural talent that is far too precious to waste. With some proper instruction you could be honed into a remarkable individual. Therefore I am issuing orders that once Lord Ren has the information he requires. You will be released from this prison and placed in our training program." She stated.

"Congratulations Rey, welcome to the First Order." She proclaimed as she turned back to the doorway.

As the door opened Rey called out. "I will not join you. You can try to justify what the First Order does however you want. But you just murdered billions and destroyed whole planets. You see murder on an unimaginable scale as a fair price for victory. You're just trying to seize power!" She called out weakly.

To her surprise Kuvira did not deny her accusations. "Your right Rey. We are determined to seize power. And with that power, we will create a galaxy where no little girl will ever be left to rot and die on a nightmare of a planet."

With that Kuvira walked out of the cell and the door slammed shut. Leaving Rey alone her new guard and her thoughts churning at the recent words and events.

 **Hux - POV**

General Hux watched the command console that showed the Upsilon-class command shuttle carrying Admiral Kuvira, jump to lightspeed out of the Starkiller system.

He smiled as he watched his plan unfold before him.

It had not been hard to convince Commander Hask to request Admiral Kuvira meet him over Vardos. While Hask was personally loyal to the First Order and Admiral Kuvira above all others. He understood the damage a superior officer could do to a career. He knew from experience that vengeful commanders could end both a successful career and a life just as easily.

When Kuvira arrived she would not be happy with whatever feeble excuse Hask had managed to come up with in the short space of time. Even if he told the Admiral the truth there would be no evidence to prove it.

At the same time he had let it be known through certain sources that the operation on Vados was taking place. The Resistance or their allies would be moving to investigate the situation. While he hoped they might actually be able to kill Kuvira, he found that very unlikely.

But it did not matter. As long as Kuvira was absent for the firing of Starkiller base and the eradication of the Resistance. The command, the responsibility and more importantly, the glory for the coming victory would belong to him.

The Supreme Leader had approved his plan to use the weapon. And with this victory under his belt while Kuvira was running around Vardos for no good reason. It would be an important step to diminish her position and power. And it was an equally important step to seeing her finally removed permanently.

He turned to the comms officer. "Order the fleet to disperse out of the system. I do not want anything to get in the way of the weapon charging and firing process." He commanded arrogantly

The officer looked abashed for a moment before responding. "General, Admiral Kuvira's orders are for the fleet to remain in defence formation around the planet in case….." the officer trailed off as Hux turned his blazing eyes to face him.

"Admiral Kuvira, is not here and therefore I am in command of all forces in this system. Now relay my orders or I will have you executed for insubordination!" He yelled.

The aide flinched at both the words and the shrillness with which they were delivered. He quickly began to relay the orders to the fleet. Soon one by one the assembled star destroyers of the 1st fleet began to jump out of the system.

Before long the space around the planet was clear and looked on in satisfaction that nothing would be able to interfere with the weapon that was about to smash the Resistance, just as it had destroyed the Republic along with the Hosnian System.

General Hux smiled as he watched the weapon pull the star's power into its system. After this day and this victory, he would go down in history. His name would be deathless. Which was more than he could say for the Resistance. He thought as he chuckled at his mental joke.


	15. Chapter 15 - The Old and the New

**Author's Note**

 **edboy4926: Thanks, as always for the review. The more that are added the more I am inspired to continue updating as fast as possible. Hux is actually a big help here as I am very often faced with the problem of making the rebels not be immediately destroyed (so Starkiller is a problem) and making the defeats not Kuvira's fault. Thankfully Hux's idiocy and schemes provide me with an option for that.**

 **In regard to the Darth Vader comic. The final issue gave us (more or less) confirmation that Darth Vader's dark side spirit has spoken to Kylo Ren at some point. I am inclined to believe that Dark Vader's spirit has 'split' in the same way Revan's spirt did on Yavin long ago. There is some evidence that Anakin and Vader are really two separate personalities within one boy like a kind of schizophrenia. I also think that it is possible that Darth Vader's mask also acts the same way as Momin's did.**

 **I will not reveal to much of what I am considering but I am defiantly interested in using all the things that the Darth Vader comic gave us.**

 **TishaLiz: Thanks again for the revirw. I am glad you liked the fight scene. It has been mentioned recently that despite Kuvira the story is proceeding more or less the same way as the movie. Admittedly up until now the movie storyline has made it difficult to introduce new parts as everything happens so fast from Jakku to Takodana. But now there is a bit of leeway, so I have been trying to add more original aspects to the story. As for what Hux will suffer for this? Well, I have some ideas.**

 **Miss Luny: Thanks for your review and compliments. I am glad you liked the Kuvira and Rey dialogue and fight scene.**

 **Chapter 15 – The Old and the New**

 **Vados**

 **Hask – POV**

Gideon Hask had travelled far and done much in his life. He had travelled from his home world of Kuat, across the galaxy in his service to the Galactic Empire in the Imperial Navy. He had fought on over a dozen planets, and travelled hundreds of light years in his tours of duty. He had been wounded in many places and each time he had survived to carry on the journey of his life with more determination then before.

But through it all, he had never forgotten how it had all begun. That day when his parents had died when he was just ten years old. He still remembered the Kuat police explaining to his sobbing ten-year-old self how a rebel terrorist infiltrator had detonated a bomb within the Kuat shipyards that his parents had both been working at. He remembered how he had cried and begged the universe too give his parents back to him. Only to be met with cold apathetic silence.

But most off all. He remembered how the rebel bomber had shouted and yelled as she was being taken away to be executed for terrorism.

How she had yelled out that she was fighting for truth, justice, democracy, freedom and other empty platitudes. That she had been fighting the 'good' fight and she was doing it for all of them. That she had not been targeting the workers of the factory. That her aim had been to demolish on of the dockyards that was busy constructing a new star destroyer.

'As if that made everything alright again'. He thought with a sneer.

It was for that reason that when his 'guardian' figured boarding school was a good substitute for an actual parent and enrolled him at the Future Imperial Leaders Military Preparatory School on the planet Vardos in the Jinata system. He welcomed it.

Because he knew from then on, that what he was doing there mattered. That he was at that school to become an officer in the Imperial Navy. That he was going to rise through the ranks and become the person who would hunt the rebels down. He knew then that he would make them pay for their treasons and terrorist actions. He would make certain that no other small child would lose their parents to those bastards ever again. And if they did, then he would make sure they could watch the murderous criminal pay for it as well.

He had been granted his wish. After leaving Vados he had studied at the Coruscant Imperial University where he graduated at the top of his class. He then served aboard the Mandate and earned the Crimson Star for exceptional performances against his enemies along with a promotion. After the Battle of Yavin, Hask, along with Senior Lieutenant Iden Versio, Del Meeko and Seyn Marana, was drafted into Inferno Squad, a Special Forces unit in the Imperial Military, by Admiral Garrick Versio.

Even though they had lost Marana soon after. Hask had been truly happy in this point of his life. He had a purpose in his efforts to hunt down the rebels and save the galaxy from them. He had a new family in the members of Inferno squad and a new home among the Corvus and the Imperial fleet. As he remembered the nights spent laughing, drinking and having fun with his squad. The places where they had been together across the galaxy. And the shore leaves when they had gathered together to enjoy their lives together away from the battles and the rules.

Looking back, he knew now it was the first time he had really felt at home since he had lost his parents so long ago.

But it had all come crashing down with the battle of Endor. They had cut through the rebel forces on the planet with ease, as Iden led the way and Del and him backed her up. Even as they did so they knew that the Imperial fleet and the new Death Star were in orbit above the planet demolishing the pathetic rebel fleet one ship at a time.

He had been certain that this was it the culmination of the quest he had been working his whole life to bring about. The utter destruction of the treacherous, murdering, self-righteous, hypocritical rebel alliance.

But then the Death Star had exploded into smoke and ash. Just like his life in that moment.

After that everything had started to unravel.

At first the mission to the Imperial dockyard was a great success. They had defeated the rebel attack force. Preserved their docked star destroyers. And destroyed two of their valuable Mon Calamari cruisers. After that victory he had allowed himself to feel hopeful again. That despite the loss of the Death Star and the Emperor and Lord Vader. The war was not over. The rebels might win a few battles, but the war would be theirs in the end.

But then the mission to Vados had happened.

Hask had not fully agreed with Operation Cinder either. He had known that it was going to cause more problems than solutions. And he was not so blind that he did not see it for what it was. The dying wish of a megalomaniacal emperor, who had decided (in the manner of a spoilt child) that if he could not live, no one else should either.

But the Empire was his home, the only home he had ever known since the rebels destroyed his last one. And a good son of the Empire followed his orders, no matter his personal misgivings. Besides, he would rather die then fight for the same cause that had killed his parents years ago.

So, he had stayed loyal. Believing that his family in Inferno Squad would do the same.

They had not. Iden and Del had betrayed the Empire, they had betrayed everything they had ever fought for. And they had betrayed him.

But he had remained loyal and finished the mission anyway. And was given a promotion to Commander by Admiral Versio. But apparently even fighting her own father was acceptable to the traitor Iden Versio and she and Del could not join the rebellion fast enough after Vardos.

He had fought them again at Bespin and finally at the end, during the battle of Jakku.

In that moment he could not imagine how it had come to this. If someone had told him before the Endor mission that one day his closest friends and him would be trying to kill each other, he would have shot them on the spot.

But in the end, the Empire had been defeated. And what was even more painful, was that Iden had shot him out of the sky and left him for dead on the deserts of that force forsaken planet.

Hask had nearly died. By all rights he should have died. But he had refused. He had refused to let Iden and Del get away with their treachery and disloyalty. He refused to let the Empire that he had fought for, the Empire that he had loved to die this way. He had refused to let his parents' deaths and all the people who had died like them to have been in vain.

But most of all, he refused to let the rebellion win. He had refused to let them win after everything they had done. He refused to let them win a war that they themselves had started for their own stupid naïve idealism. He refused to let them go on to claim victory and rewrite the history holo's. To have them create and perpetuate the myths and legends of the glorious rebellion and the evil tyrannical empire. To have them highlight and condemn Imperial actions and crimes while casually sweeping theirs under the rug of history.

He had refused!

So, before the so called 'New Republic' had sent its forces out to round up loyal Imperials like common criminals, he had fled with the rest of the Contingency. Faced with no other option they had boldly launched themselves into the depths of the Unknown Regions. From their he had helped to ensure the dreams and ideals of the Empire survived in form of the First Order.

The struggles had been hard. And for a time, they had begun to wonder if they would simply die out in the Unknown Regions, forgotten and un-mourned. They had faced the unknown every day but somehow they had stayed together. They had kept going with the same courage and efficiency that had been the hall marks of Imperial culture. Until finally they had found safety, and after thirty long years of hoping, and dreaming and fighting they had laid the foundations of the now mighty First Order.

For nearly thirty years he and the other true loyalists had tended and preserved the fire of the Imperial dream. Meanwhile they had recruited a new army and built a new fleet. Neither was as large as their Imperial equivalent, but they were both much more advanced.

And now he stood on the command bridge of his very own Resurgent class Star destroyer, aptly named the _Retribution._ All the while observing the charred ruins of the once utopian world of Vados.

He figured it was fitting that he was back here again to resolve this. It was at Vados that he had begun his journey at the Imperial academy. It was at Vados where he had gone through the tragedy and crucible of betrayal and risen stronger for it. It was at Vados where operation Resurrection had been concealed from the indolent eyes of the New Republic.

And now it was at Vados where he would finish what he had started nearly thirty years ago with the death of his treacherous former commander, friend and de-facto sister Iden Versio.

He had already killed Del after Lord Kylo Ren had dragged whatever information that he had wanted out of his head. And now he would end it and put his past to rest with the death of Iden. The fact that he would also get the chance to kill their daughter was just an added bonus. He did not consider himself a sadistic or needlessly cruel person, but he felt justified in that action.

Iden and Del had taken away his family and almost destroyed all that he had loved. Well now he would get to return the favour.

"Commander, Admiral Kuvira's shuttle has entered the system and is requesting landing clearance." His bridge officer stated as the upsilon shuttle appeared on the monitors and scopes of the bridge crew.

Hask stiffened as he was suddenly brought back to the mess that the spineless weasel Hux had managed to force him into. Hask had known better then most what a vindictive superior officer could do to a career and Hux was more vindictive then most. So, when he was instructed to close down Project Resurrection and ensure that Grand Admiral Kuvira presence was 'required' at Vados at the current time. He knew that the implied suggestion was no suggestion at all.

For a while Hask had been panicked. He had considered briefly about simply telling the Grand Admiral why he had called her here and about Hux's machinations. Afterall it was an open secret that Kuvira despised Hux possibly even more then he hated her. She would probably believe him if he told her the truth. But he had quickly dismissed the idea. Even if Kuvira believed him, there would be nothing she could do without proof and then it would be his word against the word of a superior officer.

And then Hux would proceed to make his life hell. Assuming he did not just have him killed, publicly or privately it made no difference.

But if he greeted the Grand Admiral and did not have an exceedingly good reason to have called her away from High Command and Starkiller base. Then he would probably just die at her hands instead. Kuvira was far more patient and forgiving then Hux or Supreme Leader Snoke. But there had been people in the past who had failed or provoked her, only to end up as nothing more then a statistic.

But then he had been provided an out. Project Resurrection had been a project that Kuvira had been very closely involved in. She would have wanted to ensure that the entire project was effectively closed down and that no evidence was left that their enemies could use. But while important, it would not have been enough to justify calling the Admiral out to Vados personally.

But then Iden had given him one final gift of their past friendship. She had brought herself, her kid and most of all the veteran of the Rebellion and famous Resistance member Shriv Suurgav.

While Shriv was not of particularly high rank within the Resistance. He was known to possess knowledge on the Resistance's allies that were scattered across the galaxy. These allies ranged from powerful individuals, to resistance cells, to entire planetary governments that might by sympathetic to their cause. Kuvira, like Hask, knew that the destruction of the main Resistance base, would be a crushing blow.

But not necessarily a mortal one.

There would still be Resistance supporters spread across the galaxy and there would be survivors that would attempt to unite then into a new Rebel Alliance against the First Order dominion. After all that was what had led to the rise of the rebellion and the eventual fall of the Empire. Admittedly, how many would still be eager to join after Kuvira's masterful plan to lay the war guilt irrefutably at the Resistance's feet was unclear. But the possibility of history repeating itself was too great.

And Hask knew that Kuvira was determined to not have that happen again.

And with Shriv Suurgav in their grasp they would be in a fantastic position to cripple the Resistance's attempts to gain allies and begin to unite a combined war effort. That was a prize that Admiral Kuvira would want to be a part of. And it just might prove to be his life line in this mess Hux had forced him into.

He turned back to the bridge officer. "Tell the Admiral that I am heading down to the surface to meet with Administrator Gleb in the city ruins. I will rendezvous with her at the coordinates that I will send once aboard my shuttle. Inform her that I also request a meeting via holo while in transit to explain the situation on the planet surface. We should be expecting guests to arrive in system very soon." He relayed to his subordinate. With that he turned and walked down the bridge walkway and headed to the hanger where his personally shuttle would be waiting for him.

As he walked he took the time to look around at his star destroyer, his soldiers, his command. When he came face to face with Del it had been a vindicating experience. To see him looking up from his knees as he sat there in dirty smuggler rags with his unshaved beard making him look like a vagrant. Meanwhile the Corvus, which had once been a valued ship of the Empire had become, what? A cargo freighter?!

To see Del reduced to that. And then to have Del see him as he was. A Commander with his own star destroyer, in his perfect black officer uniform, with polished boots and soldiers ready for his command, was glorious. It confirmed once again that he had made the right decisions with his life and had risen high because of it. Meanwhile Del had been left to rot in obscurity and purposelessness.

That was a good day. He only hoped that Iden proved half as salubrious for him.

 **Iden Versio - POV**

Iden walked through the ash covered streets of the city that used to be her home. The ignorant, (and Shriv) could have mistaken it for snow. They could have actually though that it gave the planet some beauty back. But that was before they learned that it was simply the atmospheric ash left over from Operation Cinder. That it was simply the final touches on the ruined, desolate landscape. The legacy of the Empire, visited on one of its most loyal worlds, by the command of their own emperor.

The planet that had once been a model Imperial world. The planet that had once been the symbol of an Imperial utopia. Was now little more than a tomb.

She wanted to pause for a moment and just remember. Remember what Vados had once been. To remember her father and her mother, and a thousand other memories that had happened on Vados. The good and the bad. She felt that she owed this poor tortured planet some form of tribute, however small the gesture was.

But she was not here to stroll down memory lane. She was here to find her husband and make Gleb and all of Jinata Security pay if even one hair on his head was harmed!

With that thought she and Shriv opened the main tower door and strode in blaster rifles aimed forward and ready.

When no shots came flashing forward to meet them they allowed their eyes to adjust to the dim light from the door and the all-encompassing darkness that filled the entry hall. And the first thing that they laid eyes on was the clearly deceased corpse of Gleb lying on the floor in front of them. The administrators form was clearly illuminated by the light from outside. And the clearly fresh blaster wound on her chest was so clear it was almost on display.

What was also clear to Iden was that she would not be getting any answers about her husband from Gleb. Although she could not say that she was sorry to see the bitch's corpse in front of her. She had after all been planning on doing that herself if she gave answers that Iden didn't like. She might have done it anyway to finally remove this memory from her past.

She supposed that was a hanger on from her Imperial training.

"It's Gleb". She called to Shriv as she straightened up from her firing position and heard Shriv move closer.

"It was Gleb!" A voice called out from the darkness. A voice that Iden new sounded so familiar.

Iden turned to raise her blaster up at the source of the sound. But before she could even aim her weapon a red blaster bolt fired out of the gloom and slammed into her weapon. The rifle was thrown out of her grasp and clattered to the floor. But before she could make a grab for it she saw two sights that she had never wanted to see again.

The first was stormtroopers. It weird how they ranked among her greatest things to avoid given how many times she had fought beside them in the days of the Empire. But after all that had happened she had prayed that she would never have to see that iconic white armour again. In a way she supposed she had got her wish. These were not Imperial stormtroopers. These were troopers of the First Order. But that just hammered home the knowledge that their legacy continued even three decades from the battle of Jakku

The second was the person that had uttered the familiar voice.

Gideon Hask. Her former friend and squad mate had come back from the dead it seemed. In another time long ago, she would have been overjoyed to see him. Now all she could think was how much things had changed. And how much she wanted to put a blaster pistol to his head.

"Drop your weapon." Another voice commanded from within the darkness behind Hask. Behind her she heard Shriv drop his weapon as well. Before she could do anything else another series of blaster bolts fired from the darkness and slammed into the both her discarded weapon and Shriv's on the floor, ensuring that both rifles were now lying smoking and useless on the ground.

She briefly saw the outline of the person that had fired the shots before the darkness closed back in around them. But she could not make out their face or any details beyond their outline. But now she had to focus on Hask as he came forward to stand before her. He was decked out proudly in the uniform of the First Order. Strangely it seemed to suit him better then his Inferno squad uniform ever had.

"The protectorate had outlived her usefulness to Project Resurrection and the First Order." Hask said, with the air of one commenting on the weather, rather then the abduction of children. She could not help but sneer back a response.

"Project Resurrection. Kidnapping children?!" She asked in a tone that was half accusatory and half mocking. Maybe some part of her was trying to hammer the point home to the remains of the person Hask had once been. The person that had been her friend.

But it clearly did not have the desired effect as it seemed not to phase Hask at all. "Rescuing them. Forging them into an army the likes of which, the galaxy has never seen." Hask proclaimed with an unmistakable note of pride in his voice as he spoke. Meanwhile he moved down the steps away from his concealed companions and moved towards Iden and Shriv while his troopers kept their blasters trained on them.

Shriv spoke up with clear outrage in his voice. "The Senate won't stand for this! This will be just the revelation for them to answer your ultimatum and join the Resistance against you." He declared with conviction. But if he was expecting Hask and the rest of the First Order personnel to be hindered by that declaration he was dead wrong. In fact, he was very surprised by the look of confusion that appeared on Hask's face and the way that the troopers briefly turned to look at each other as if in question.

"The senate? Surely you…." Hask began before realisation dawned on his face.

"Oh of course, you have been in hyperspace for your journey here. Out of contact" He said as a look of pure enjoyment spread across his face. "Well then let me be the one to tell you that the Senate, the Republic Home Fleet, and in fact the entire Hosnian system are nothing but ash and cosmic dust. The Ultimatum has expired. The war has already begun." He stated with clear contentment before adding. "And in your case the war has quite possibly already been lost."

Shriv and Iden stared at him in a look that was a mix of disbelieve and horror before Shriv managed to get hold of his tongue. "Those red lights we heard reports of?" He asked shakily.

Hask nodded in response with a look of nostalgia on his face. "It was beautiful wasn't it?" He asked rhetorically.

Shriv bowed his head as if in mourning. But Iden was looking at Hask with an expression of pure disgust. If what he said was true. Then billions of lives had been wiped out in a single galactic rotation. Men woman children, millions of non-sapient species on the planets and the entire star system itself! The scale of the deaths was on a level never before witnessed in known galactic memory and made the destruction of Alderaan look pitiful in comparison. That wasn't even counting the fact that it was simply the opening shot of a new galactic war that would certainly claim the lives of millions more innocent people.

And Hask was talking about it as if it had been nothing more than a charming fireworks display!

He even had the nerve to continue gloating at this 'achievement'. "You see the Republic spent decades doing nothing. While all along, we were preparing, for this day." Hask said with clear enjoyment in his voice. Then he turned away from Shriv to face his old colleague once again.

"You see Iden. I hope you appreciate, that today, of all days, I chose to be here with you." Ask said as he moved to stand closer to Iden so that they could stare each other clear in the face. As he continued to speak his voice lost the mocking tone of victory and instead turned to a tone that carried both furious anger and a small but clear note of hurt betrayal. His face also began to twitch in a way that hinted that he was fighting back powerful emotions. He was also blinking rabidly as if trying to hold back…tears?

"In the place that you took everything from me." He whispered.

Iden for a moment forgot her own hatred of Hask and was almost about to commiserate with him. To tell him that she had never wanted to fight him. That she had never wanted to go against him. That she wished he had come with her and Del when they had defected to join the rebellion.

In truth, she wanted to tell him that she had not even wanted to join the rebellion or abandon the Empire. She had served the Empire just as long and loyally as he had and so had Del. She would have continued to do so until her last breath if things had been different after Endor.

But then Operation Cinder had been put into effect. And once Iden saw what the Emperor had commanded from beyond the grave. And that the Imperial high command were actually willing to implement such a demented monstrous plan on loyal and peaceful Imperial worlds. She knew that this time she could not simply follow her orders and ignore what was happening. And so, she had deserted with Del while Hask had stayed loyal or indoctrinated depending on point of view.

But even then she had not wanted to side with the Rebel Alliance or the New Republic. They and their cause had meant nothing to her. It still didn't really. That was why she had not joined the Resistance despite Shriv and General Organa's many requests. The only reason she had joined them in the first place was that they were the only ones able to stop Operation Cinder. Also, the post-Endor Empire had proven that for the good of the galaxy and all it once stood for, it could not continue to exist. With that being the case a new regime would need to rise to keep some semblance of galactic order. And the New Republic had been the only option at the time.

She wanted to say this and more to her long-lost friend. But he didn't give her the chance before he continued speaking with his accusations.

"Yes, our squad, my family. And I have waited a long time to return the favour." He said as he got his emotion back under control and his victorious smugness regained its place.

The voice emerged from the darkness behind Hask again. "Commander while I want to ensure you gain your required closure. I must remind you that we are at war and time is a precious commodity." The voice was female, and clearly authoritative. Whoever was standing up there was obviously of higher rank then Hask;s Commander position. That alone got Iden curious about their identity.

Hask nodded in both appreciation and understanding and turned back to Iden. "First with Del." He stated as if he was not confirming what she had begun to suspect. That he had murdered her husband and his onetime best friend.

Her remorse over the past vanished in an instant and she would have launched herself at him if she did not know that she had a blaster aimed at her back from the troopers behind her. Not to mention that Hask silent ally might have half a dozen blasters aimed at her.

"And now, with your daughter" Hask said as he gestured out the still open door to the ruined city. When Iden looked she saw with horror that a First Order Resurgent Star Destroyer had appeared silently over the city. Even as she watched it was unleashing green turbo blasts on the Corvus that had Zay on board.

"No Hask" She said but even if he had counter manded the order, it was too late. The Corvus was blasted out of the sky by the attack. As they all watched the burning wreckage of the once proud ship came crashing down on the city. Eventually it disappeared behind the remaining buildings and the explosion from its impact was all that could be seen as TIE fighters flew over the ships new grave.

"No". Iden uttered in horror as she watched the explosion erupt. Hask meanwhile never turned away from her. Clearly he wanted to savour the agony and grief that was displayed on her face. After he had sampled all that he wanted he turned to his troops.

"Find out what they know about the Resistance and then burn the city." He turned back to Iden, who also turned back towards him. "I had to live in your galaxy Iden. Well now its your turn to live in mine!" He snarled as he turned away.

In any normal situation Iden would never have done what she did next as it was literally suicide. She would have waited until she found an opening to escape and then she would have taken it and then thought of a plan. She would not even contemplate reckless or stupid actions.

But this was not a normal situation. She had lost her husband, her ship and now her daughter too. And she came to the realisation that she had nothing left in the galaxy. If she could go out having strangled the life out of Hask's smug smirking face. Then she could die with some semblance of happiness left in her soul!

That was why she launched herself at Hask's unprotected back as he turned away from her. Hoping that the troopers would be so stunned by her insane move that she could get lose enough to make contact. Then she would need only two seconds to implement the killing moves that she had learned during her Imperial training.

But before she could do it a blaster bolt fired out of the darkness from the steps and slammed into her shoulder. The force and the pain sent her spinning and she crashed to the ground as Hask spun round and the troopers moved in and started beating her into submission with their rifle butts, fists and feet. Meanwhile the other two kept their blasters trained on Shriv, lest he try to defend her.

After a few moments, the beating subsided and bruised, dazed and bleeding Iden Versio was hauled to her feet by one trooper while the other took careful aim at her chest.

"I have to say I expected better of you Senior Lieutenant Versio. Though I suppose it can be excused give the emotional trauma you have receive today." The voice from the shadows said in a tone that was not mocking, but simply factual.

Iden opened her swelling eyes and stared at the dark space. "Says the one who slinks around in the dark. What are you, an Umbaran?" She spat back.

For a reply, the figure moved into the light and she found herself looking at a young human woman in her late twenties. She had black hair done up tightly in a military fashion. She had tanned skin and an incredible set of emerald green eyes that bore into her like a Krayt Dragon looking at a defenceless baby Bantha.

Iden was not in the Resistance but she knew instantly who it was. These days anyone would after watching the holonet about the ultimatum from the First Order. And judging by the intake of breath from Shriv, he did too.

Grand Admiral Kuvira.

She was dressed head to heel in the black uniform of the First Order with a black greatcoat and the First Order insignia on her arms and belt buckle. She had her arms clasped behind her back. That lead Iden to ask the next question.

"How did you know I was going to attack him? And how did you shoot me so fast?" She asked blearily.

Kuvira shook her head in response. "I saw you enter the attack stance as you prepared to launch your attack at the Commander. Even then I was watching you carefully as I figured you might try to gain some form of revenge and your emotions might overwhelm your tactical reason." She said as she made her way down the steps.

"But I cannot claim credit for shooting you." She said as she gestured behind her.

Iden looked and she saw two more figures emerging from the darkness behind the Admiral. They were both clad in red armour and robes and bore a strong resemblance to the appearance of the Emperor's royal guardsmen. They were each wielding a long vibro-voulge which were not crackling as the energy that would emit from the blade in battle was shutdown. Even as she watched, one of them was placing a blaster pistil back within their robes.

She had never seen or even heard of troopers like these before. But based on their appearance and the way they fell into defence position around the Grand Admiral. It was clear they were guards and very well trained. She glanced at Shriv to see if he knew what troopers they were, but he looked as confused as her.

Kuvira then answered they unasked question. "Allow me to introduce these two fine men. They are part of the Praetorian Guard. They typically serve to protect the Supreme Leader at all times. But he was magnanimous enough to send two of them to join us on this mission to Vados." Kuvira said as she came down to face them with the newly identified Praetorian guards moving in lock step behind her.

When she got to where Iden and Shriv were being held she stopped and observed them for a moment. Then she spoke to Iden.

"I have long hoped to have the opportunity to meet you Iden Versio. Your Imperial military service record is very impressive. And actually, served as an example to me when I was younger and in training." She said as Iden's surprise rose along with her eyebrows. Then the anger and grief of today reappeared.

"You might have been inspired. But clearly you didn't understand. If you did, you would not be wearing that uniform." She spat.

Kuvira merely nodded. "I won't deny your treason against the Empire and your defection to the rebellion is a source of anger to me and to others." She gestured at Hask. "But I also know that it was not done out disloyalty but out of desperation and disgust at Operation Cinder. Your loyalty to the Empire. And possibly your future with the First Order was cast aside due to the madness of those in power. Yet another thing that Palpatine's madness and vanity cost us." She said with anger and irritation spearing on her face at the mention of the deceased Emperor.

For a moment silence. Then Kuvira's stoicism reappeared and she straightened up again. "But that is the past. And an Admiral must look to the future." She said as silence fell on the group again.

But then surprisingly Shriv broke the silence.

"Is it true?" He asked. The question directed at Kuvira.

Kuvira turned to regard him and so did Iden. But the next second, one the troopers slammed his rifle butt into Shriv stomach and sent him doubling over in pain. "You will address the Admiral with respect Resistance scum!" The trooper barked.

Iden had seen more then her share of sycophants in her time in the Imperial military. And from what she had observed that was not an ambitious toady trying to get on a superior's good side. That had seemed like genuine devotion and loyalty.

The Admiral waved the trooper back and he returned to his previous position. "My apologies for my slightly over zealous trooper Captain. Is what true?" She asked politely. That tone of voice also sent warning bells in Iden's mind. Officers and leaders who shouted and raged were prone to mistakes. Clearly the rumours of Kuvira's competence were not exaggerated.

Coughing and breathing deeply, Shriv tried again. "Is it true…..(cough)…about the Hosnian system?" He wheezed.

Understanding flashed in Kuvira's eyes. "Ah, yes it is true. The timeframe I set for the ultimatum expired and the New Republic senate had failed to deliver any answer. By the terms and conditions set by the ultimatum that was taken as an act of war. I sent my acceptance of that to the senate and after that it was official. Once all the rules of declaration were fulfilled we launched our opening strike on Hosnian Prime." She paused.

"I regret the amount of collateral damage, but our opening strike was an astonishing success. The New Republic military and political forces have been all but annihilated, baring a few hold outs scattered across the galaxy. And already we have received multiple declarations of secession and surrender to the First Order. As a direct result, the galaxy will hopefully see a swift end to this war." She summarised with notes of pride and satisfaction in her voice.

Shriv and Iden did not share her opinion on the situation.

"Collateral damage! That is what you call the murder or billions?! The deaths of civilians?! Of men, women and children?! Of entire worlds?! Collateral damage!" Shriv shouted and it took another blow to the stomach too stop him flying at the Admiral.

Kuvira remained unphased. "Is there some other terminology you would prefer I use?" She asked plainly. Clearly she was merely indulging their anger.

Iden continued for the once again coughing and gasping Shriv. "How about barbaric, monstrous, evil!" She hissed at the other woman who turned to regard her with a bored expression.

"Those words imply that the action was senseless and without cause. And as I have already stated that action has greatly increased the chance of a quick victory for the First Order and that the countless other worlds will be spared galactic war. A few billion lives to ensure the preservation of possibly hundreds of trillions." She elaborated to the disbelieving faces before her.

"I don't know about you, but I would call that, a bargain." She finished in a ton that spoke of notion but absolute certainty.

Iden and Shriv found it impossible to form words to respond. But it was clear to both of them there was no point. The gap between the Admiral's priorities and values was so far from their own that they might as well have been speaking two different languages.

But Shriv did not stay quiet. "The galaxy will make you answer for the atrocity. They will now see you for who and what you really are. The entire free galaxy will unite to stand against your evil. All you have done is create another Alderann to form a rallying cry around Admiral. You seem to hate Palpatine, but you have just repeated his mistake. And like him you will answer for it." Shriv said ending with a mocking bark of laughter.

The trooper made to hit him again, but Kuvira waved him back as she turned to regard Shriv with a look that some would call pity. "Like many in your Resistance you seem to have selective hearing Mr Suurgav." She said before she turned away to stare outside at the Vados sky. It was as if she was looking far past what was within her line of sight.

"I would be a fool to assume that this war is already over. But the senate and Republic fleet was destroyed less than one galactic rotation ago. Since then we have received thousands, perhaps millions of communications from Republic worlds. They have contained messages from planetary governments and corporations from many different races across many different worlds. But they do have one thing in common. They are all either announcing their secession from the New Republic and requesting the protection of the First Order. Or they are proclaiming their unconditional surrender and requesting our terms.

Our fleets are moving through Republic territory virtually unopposed. The small remaining Republic military forces are being swept aside. In fact, I have even received reports of them being fired upon by planetary defence forces and driven from the systems they thought were loyal. Whether that was done to prevent attack from us or out of hatred for the New Republic I am unsure. But what I am sure of is this. The New Republic has turned on itself instead of uniting as you proclaim.

But that is what happens when you strike a tree that is infected with rot. It collapses and breaks apart." She stated as all the group listened to her improvised speech. Kuvira took a deep breath as she seemed to revel in the situation.

"I try to not allow myself to indulge in petty pleasures. But I confess I have taken a measure of satisfaction I what has happened. The speed and way that the New Republic has shattered after the loss of your leadership is strikingly similar to what happened to the Empire after your rebels destroyed the Death Star above Endor. I find I cannot help but enjoy the irony of that." She finished as she turned back to face them.

"But as I said time is a valuable commodity and we must be going." But then she turned away from the entry doorway and headed back into the darkness as she moved towards the stairway that she and the others had emerged from. As she did the two Praetorian guards well back to either side of her as the troopers began to shove their prisoners along with them.

Iden asked the question. "Where are we going?" She asked as her hands were bound behind her back by binder cuffs.

Kuvira called back. "You will be taken on board the Retribution and interrogated on what you know about the Resistance. What happens after that depends on your conduct during that process."

Shriv then spoke up. "Then why are we going this way?" He said trying to keep his voice casual as he fished for information.

Kuvira didn't even turn as she spoke. "We cannot go that way. The remains of the Jinata Secruity force is waiting outside to ambush us once we exit the main tower door. I imagine it is in retaliation for Gleb's death or our intrusion here. So, once we leave out the back and reach our shuttle the Retribution will fire on them and reduce this district to ash."

At their stunned silences she added. "All star destroyers, Imperial class and Resurgent have lifeform scanners. Do they think we do not use them?" She asked sarcastically.

 **Authors Note**

 **First off, sorry for the longer then normal delay for this update. Work, friends and the new year have been busy as I am sure all know. But I just wanted to raise a few points.**

 **Firstly, to those who might be wondering. Yes, my comment about Iden Verio's future in the First Order being ruined by 'the madness of those in power' was a direct dig at the makers of Star Wars Battlefront 2. They completely went back on the Imperial/First Order storyline that we were promised in the trailers for the game. I felt utterly cheated by that.**

 **Secondly. I did not originally want to watch Star Wars Resistance the tv series. I felt that it looked badly animated and a cheap sequel to Clone Wars and Rebels. But I started watching it because I needed more info on the Resistance and First Order Cold War conflict among other things. But I have to say that it is not a bad show. I admit the animation still bothers me a little. And whether or not it is a worthy successor to Clone Wars and Rebels is debateable. But I will say to those who have not yet given it a chance to watch a few episodes and see if it grows on you as well.**

 **Finally, a quick question. A reviewer recently pointed out that despite some differences with Kuvira the story was just following the movies original plot. While I didn't think that was a problem as many popular OC fanfics I love do the same. I wanted to ask my readers to let me know in their reviews if they think this story needs more original events completely separate from the movies, games etc.**

 **Please let me know your opinions as this is an important thing for me to know in my future chapters. The more readers who let me know the more I know what to give them.**


	16. Chapter 16 - Root and Stem

**Rhyming With Oranges: Thanks for the advice and I am glad you liked the backstory for Hask. It is like you said, important to understand the motivations of people. That is how you understand why they fight for the 'bad' side instead of just 'because they are evil'. On your point about Kylo Ren and Kuvira I will be having more focus on their relation ship in the battle of Starkiller Base. That is the titanic scene when emotions etc are running high. Everything up until now has been very professional due to the timeframe of the events and their individual personalities. These are two people who do not declare their undying love and sit under the moonlight. They can be together, but I need to stay true to their nature. But it definitely will develop if slowly.**

 **MrMayhem FF: Thanks for the review. I agree with you comment about Iden. They finally had a chance to portray the other side of the conflict. To show that it was not all 'Imperials kicking puppies' and 'Rebels rescuing children' in this war. They could have shown an in-depth story about why someone wold fight for the Empire and how the rebellion might look without the propaganda of the movies. Instead, they completely went back on what they advertised and did the cliché defection to the rebellion in the first three missions of the game. It was a complete let down.**

 **I have to say I did not even consider a Rey and Kuvira pairing like you suggested. Although I can see how that could make for a good story. However so far the reviews have been overwhelmingly in favour of a Kylo/Kuvira pairing. So, I do not think it will be likely. However, Rey and Kuvira will definitely have a unique relationship too as shown in the 14** **th** **chapter.**

 **TishaLiz: Thanks for all your comments in your review they really mean a lot. Also, thanks for your opinion on my question about the matter of original or movie content. I will take it into account. Once again thank you for your compliments they are greatly appreciated.**

 **Guest: Thanks for your review and your opinion. As for the matter of the First Order winning. I will not reveal too much so as to keep suspense. But I will say that this will not be a 'redemption' story and I have no intention of abiding my 'protagonist rules'.**

 **(2** **nd** **) Guest: Thanks for your review and your thoughts on the question about the storyline. I liked your suggestions for the potential outcomes of the story and will consider those that I can. In regard to your point about Kuvira's loyalty to Snoke. Well that is true, she is very loyal to Snoke. She admires him for his intelligence, power and ability to command respect as a leader should. But unlike some Imperial's previously, Kuvira is loyal to the First Order above all else. She is loyal to the Supreme Leader and to the First Order. But she knows that they are two different things. For her the Supreme Leader is a majorly important part of the First Order but to her he is just that. A part of the First Order.**

 **And if she thinks it is in the best interests of the unity and safety of the First Order. She will bow to a new Supreme Leader if the need arises.**

 **Chapter 16 – Root and Stem**

 **Resurgent Class Star Destroyer – Retribution**

 **Kuvira - POV**

Kuvira stood on the bridge of the Retribution, watching the flames blazing down on the surface of Jinata city as towers of black smoke rose into the sky like demonic fingers. The central tower she, Hask and their prisoners had recently vacated had collapsed during the bombardment that the star destroyer had sent down onto their attempted ambushers in the city.

The former members of the now extinct Jinata security force had clearly been intending to ambush them as they exited the building after completing their trap for Iden Versio and Shriv. Whether this was motivated by revenge for Gleb or some other perceived offense she did not know. Nor did she care, but it was irrelevant now.

The Retribution had sent dozens of turbo laser blasts into the city district where they had been congregating. The fires and the explosions had quickly forced the failed assassins to abandon their positions and run for cover. But there had been no cover available strong enough to safe them from the power of the First Order. One by one the lifeform readings on the Retribution's seniors had faded away like the stars on a morning sunrise, until they were all gone.

And with their rather violent deaths. The reminder that you should not provoke the First Order remained very much alive.

As she watched the fires blaze and the smoke rising even higher, the star destroyer began to move away and steadily rise into the atmosphere. Slowly the planet surface and city scape fell away and soon the ship broke through the cloud cover and continue to head into open space. The TIE fighters that had been deployed to patrol the planet's skies began to form up on the vessel as they were recalled from their mission.

As she watched the display she allowed herself to do something she almost always tried to avoid. She let her mind wander. She found that the brightness of the setting sun combined with the pure white of the clouds against a golden sky was awe-inspiring. Combined with the movements of the Star destroyer as it rose through the clouds and the TIE fighters almost seeming to dance in syce with the situation. It seemed to her to reflect the beauty and purpose of both the universe and the First Order. And the fact that they were constant forces of nature that could not be opposed.

She was broken out of her musings as she heard footsteps coming up the bridge walkway. Turning she forced herself not to wince at the sight of the golden stormtrooper marching up toward her.

Commander Pyre was an experienced and capable officer within the Stormtrooper core. He was a valued tactical officer and he had great skill in is command of operations in both the military and espionage. He had been valuable in the operations in the Outer Rim territories, like on Castilon. And he had proven to be skilled when it came to utilise the undesirable elements of the galaxy, such as pirates. In summation he was a commander that any Admiral would have been happy to have aboard their ship.

And she was glad to have him. Her concealed wince did not stem from him, but his choice of armour. She frankly found the gold-plated armour to be rather too garish and gauche then what was expected of an officer in the First Order.

But she only had herself to blame.

In one of her many changes to the First Order military doctrine. She had ordered that all soldiers who attained an officer's rank were to select names for themselves to replace their previous identification numbers. She found it to be an effective way to motivate soldiers to excel and to reward soldiers who had served well and become officers.

However, the new regulation had also allowed for them to customise their own armour if they wished. Most officers had not taken up this option. Instead they preferred to remain in the traditional white armour with their officer's rank displayed normally. However, some, like Cardinal, Phasma, Vonreg and Pyre had indeed used this to customise their now iconic armour.

Thankfully they had kept it to a simple colour alteration. She would not have tolerated poke-a-dotted or rainbow coloured officers in her military.

But despite her distaste for his fashion choice. Kuvira was certainly not let that interfere with her respect and appreciation of a capable officer like Pyre.

Pyre reached her and snapped off a perfect salute. "Grand Admiral." He said and waited to be acknowledged.

Kuvira turned fully around to face him. "At ease Commander. Have your troopers completed your sweep of the area around the wreck of the Corvus?" She asked.

Pyre nodded. "Yes Admiral. They scoured the wreckage and have collected any useful data from the computers. However, they were unable to locate the body of the pilot Zay Versio." He said. "It is possible that her corpse was vaporised or is simply buried under the wreckage. But our scanners did not detect any organic residue to correlate that scenario. In addition, an escape pod appears to have been jettisoned from the ship. Although that could have been a result of the attack and surface impact. We searched the ejected escape pod. No one was inside when we arrived but there were signs that it had been occupied."

Kuvira's raised an eyebrow. "Did you initiate the scanners to see if there are any lifeforms left in the city? It is possible that the girl has taken refuge in the nearby buildings."

Pyre shook his head. "We conducted the scan already Ma'am. There are no lifeforms left in the city. Aside from those that belong to the local wildlife." He reported.

"Then the girl is still alive apparently." Kuvira considered for a moment before she continued. "The girl will be aiming to rescue her mother if she can. She will not try to contact outside help. She doesn't have assured means of contacting them and based on what we know, she lacks the patience to allow such a time-consuming option. She will therefore make the attempt herself. The only way for her to do that is to get on board the Retribution. And the only option will be to use one of our ships as we have destroyed all the ones that belonged to the Jinata security force." She paused in her analyse to look at the bridge officer directly.

"Have all of our troop transports returned to the hanger, Lieutenant?" She asked.

The officer took a few moments to consult his instruments and read outs before replying. "Yes, Ma'am. All transports and their squads have returned and disembarked. All surviving troopers from the city battle have been accounted for and debriefings are already underway. The only forces that are yet to return are the fighter patrols."

Kuvira's eyes lit up once she heard that and she gave a small smile. "Ah, clever girl. Lieutenant monitor those fighters closely. If any of them display unusual behaviour I expect to be notified." She commanded.

The Lieutenant nodded and relayed the orders to the squadron commander. Kuvira meanwhile settled in to wait.

She did not have to wait long.

"Admiral, the squadron leader is reporting that Delta Six has left their post on the planet and joined them in their flight formation and is not responding to hails." The officer reported.

Kuvira nodded. "Attempt contact one more time and bring the turrets online and lock on to the fighter with the ventral cannons. If the pilot doesn't respond, destroy it." She stated plainly.

The officer nodded. But before he could begin relaying the orders his display lit up with urgent notifications. "Admiral the fighter has attacked and destroyed three of its formation mates and is now taking evasive action. The squadron is moving to intercept it." He stated as his fingers flew over the console relaying various instructions to the fighters.

Kuvira nodded and turned back to face Pyre. "I think he have found our erstwhile missing Zay Versio." She said.

Pyre nodded. "The girl is brave. Clearly stupid but brave." He muttered with some level of respect.

Kuvira nodded in agreement. "A very dangerous combination. For her."

But as the dogfight continued outside the Star destroyer Kuvira began to grow less amused at the progression of the battle. "May I ask why our entire squadron has not yet managed to bring down a single TIE piloted by a young girl?" She asked with a level of calm apathy that fooled no one and caused many of the bridge crew to wish they were invisible.

The same officer eventually was forced to find his voice. "Admiral, the opening attack caught the squadron completely off guard and claimed the life of the flight leader. In addition, the pilots are having trouble identifying the target among all of the other TIE's in the sky. And we cannot use the ventral cannons without placing our own fighters at risk." The officer mumbled in response.

Kuvira sighed and nodded, remaining silent. The officer had brought up valid concerns and there was nothing to be gained by growing visibly frustrated. A fool like Hux would have ranted and raged at the bridge crew but that would gain nothing. A leader was expected to remain composed when things did not go according to plan. A moments loss of control could result in their subordinates losing faith in their ability to lead them through defeat and death.

The girl could shoot down more than her fair share of TIE fighters. But this battle was unwinnable. Sooner or later she would be hit, and her fighter would be destroyed.

Suddenly as the monitors showed the dogfight moving to the back of the ship near the engines. Kuvira's heard her personal commlink go off.

She pulled the small device out of her coat pocket and keyed the button to activate it. A small blue Nephitina appeared on the projection. Kuvira noticed immediately that she had a slightly worried look on her face. That immediately drove the concerns of the lone fighter from her mind.

"Lieutenant, what has happened?" She asked, not wasting time on formality. Thankfully neither did Nephitina, who offered a quick salute before she began to speak.

"Admiral, Starkiller Base is under attack! Resistance X-wings are attacking the planet's oscillator with everything they have!" She blurted out.

Kuvira's stomach clenched. She knew that the power of Starkiller base was virtually unfathomable. A power that could obliterate an entire star system in an instant and fed of a star's concentrated dark matter, was nothing short of godlike. And she knew that containing power like that until the moment it was fired required an intense number of safeguards along natural and artificial means.

One of those artificial safeguards was the planets thermal oscillator. The planets magnetic field was unusually strong and was used to help contain the sheer amount of energy with the planetary core. But even a strong natural field was simply not up to that kind of task. Therefore, the oscillator was essential in boosting the containment field and ensuring that the power remained stable and contained until it was intentional released out of the firing mechanism.

If the oscillator was destroyed while the weapon was charged up to fire. Then the containment system would fail. And the power of the weapon, instead of firing in a linear path out the barrel. Would instead shoot through the entire planetary core and shatter the crust like an egg. The result of which would be nothing short of cataclysmic.

She refocussed herself and focused on the nervous Twi'lek. "How did the Resistance fighters get through the defence perimeter? The entire 1st fleet is stationed over Starkiller and an entire attack force would be decimated before they reached the surface." She demanded.

Nephitina paused as she seemed to gather her courage. "Admiral, the 1st fleet has been ordered out of the system. General Hux ordered it shortly after your departure. He claimed he did not want anything to potentially interfere with the firing mechanism." She reported with the last sentence dripping with sarcasm. Like Kuvira she clearly knew that Hux had done what he did to ensure that he did not have to share any credit with other commanders.

Kuvira stood as still as a statue as she digested the information. The bridge crew seemed to be holding their breath as they had clearly heard the conversation between the Admiral and her aid. The Admiral remained still and silent and gave no indication of anger.

Only someone attuned to the Force would have sensed the storm of anger and rage that was ragging within her.

She was furious. Furious at Hux for being such an idiotic fool too have ordered their entire defence fleet away from its position just so he could claim more glory for himself. She was furious at Hask for drawing her away from Starkiller to attend an interesting but ultimately menial task. She was furious at the Resistance and all their insipid refusals to simply accept defeat and surrender with grace.

But most of all, she was furious at herself. She had allowed this to happened by allowing Hux to retain his rank and his life. She knew what he was, and she knew that she should have simply killed him years ago. Whether it was by open military tribunal for some offense or if it was done in the darkness of night with a vibroblade. It would not have mattered. But that incompetent fool would have been wiped from the galaxy and could no longer have endangered the First Order with his idiocy!

She should have had him killed and damn what the Supreme Leader said!

Kuvira took an audible inhale as she regained control of her fury. The noise of her breath only added to the tension in the bridge as the crew felt the tension spike at the noise and focused on what was directly ahead of them with all their might.

As Kuvira exhaled, she felt her iron-willed control reassert itself. She could not undo Hux's foolishness. But she could work to ensure it did not cost the First Order Starkiller Base.

And she would also make sure that this mistake would be Hux's last. She would be certain of that!

She refocused on Nephitina's hologram and when she spoke it was with her usual iconic factual tone of voice. "Order all non-essential staff to evacuate the planet. Fighter squadrons will be deployed to combat the enemy if they have not been already. The base weapon is to be fired as soon as it is able to. It is too late to stop the weapon charging so it must expel the energy as fast as possible to eliminate the danger. I will be returning with the Retribution with all speed." She commanded as she gestured to the bridge crew to begin preparations for travel.

Nephitina looked slightly stunned. "Evacuate the planet? Admiral, many of the planetary command will not want to follow that order." She said in what was a legendary understatement.

Kuvira brushed that aside with clear contempt. "Then remind them that they are currently standing on a thin layer of rock, stone and metal that is all that is keeping them from the celestial mass of dark matter energy swirling in the planet core under their feet. And that the Resistance is currently trying to destroy the one thing that is stopping that planet from crumpling to dust beneath them." She stated bluntly.

"If they continue to refuse the order, tell them they are welcome to discuss the matter with me if they remain alive afterwards. At which point I will then have them all executed for insubordination. I will not make Tarkin's mistake." She stated with a noticeable bite to her words now.

Nephitina nodded her understanding. She was about to shut down the commlink before Kuvira gave her final instructions. "And get yourself to a ship as soon as possible. If some stubborn fools want to risk death I will not have you share their fate. I am returning from Vardos now." She instructed.

Nephitina's eyes filled with an emotion that Kuvira could not place. Gratitude? Vindication? Respect?

Whatever it was, it could wait as Kuvira closed down the commlink and turned to her bridge crew which remained waiting for instructions.

"Forget that TIE fighter. Set course for Starkiller base and prepare to jump to lightspeed."

The bridge crew nodded and immediately began to enter the coordinates into the nav computers and ordered all fighters to be recalled to their hangers. Hask stepped up to her from his previous position by the tactical readouts. "Should we not contact the 1st fleet to return to Starkiller. The fleets firepower would ensure that the Resistance was destroyed in a matter of moments." He asked tentatively, well aware of how the Admiral's temper had very nearly erupted moments before.

Kuvira shook her head as she turned to regard him. "The danger is too great. If the fleet arrives over the planet but the Resistance succeeds in destroying the oscillator. Then the planets destruction could very well take our entire fleet with it. We would face our own version of the Hosnian Prime attack. For now, the fleet will be kept well away from the system, as will all others. The planetary garrison forces will need to resolve this matter."

She turned back to the bridge crew. "Ensure that we come out of lightspeed a safe distance from the planet. And have the coordinates for out nearest outpost logged into the computer in case we need to make a quick escape from the system.

With all that said. Kuvira moved to face the bridge windows as the star destroyer broke through the upper atmosphere and the golden and red sky of Vados's sunset gave way to the star studded black of space. As she watched the stars began to stretch to eternity as the hyperdrive came online. Then the black of real space was lost in the swirling blue tunnel of hyperspace.

Kuvira turned away and walked down the bridge walk way. "I will be in my quarters. Inform me thirty minutes before we arrive at Starkiller." She ordered. She had been working almost non-stop for the last two days and it was clearly beginning to show in her emotional control. She needed some sleep.

 **Zay Versio - POV**

Zay moved through the corridors of the star destroyer as silently as she could. She was just thankful that the corridors of the ship's detention level were largely empty. Occasionally she had been forced to duck behind a corner or move into an adjacent room. But the occasional pairs of patrolling stormtroopers had mostly left her alone after a few tense moments of hiding.

She was just thankful to be alive. And she owes that to Dio, her mother's faithful imperial droid who had been left with her on the Corvus on Vados. Dio had been able to locate an opening through a heating port by the starboard engines, so they blasted it open and flew in just as the Star Destroyer prepare to jump to hyperspace.

The TIE fighter had not survived contact with the ship's engine electrical discharges as the star destroyer had activated their hyperdrive. The energy blasts had scrambled her systems and it was only by sheer luck that the TIE had remained mostly intact from the crash and not burst into flames with her in it.

She had quickly pulled herself from the wreckage and made her escape as far away from the crash site as she could while moving to the detention area. She had been certain that the First Order would come and investigate the crash. How could they not? A TIE had crashed inside their star destroyer. But so far there had been no alarms or increase in stormtrooper patrols. She was starting to wonder if the star destroyer was so large that a little fighter blowing up in the engine was beneath their notice.

But that didn't matter anymore as she finally found her way in to the interior of the ship and eventually arrived at the detention centre. As she peaked through the entryway to the brig she noticed two stormtroopers were standing guard at two cell doors on either side of the corridor.

Zay paused. She could shoot a blaster well. Both her mother and her father had given her the same training in blasters that they had received at the Imperial academy. She was confident that she could get a headshot in on one of the guards and drop him in an instant. But she was not so gifted that she felt she could get off another shot and take down the other guard before he returned fire or set off an alarm.

And if a firefight started in the brig. Well I would not be long before she ended up joining mom and Shriv in the cells.

Thankfully that was the kind of situation Dio was programmed to help with. "You take out the guard on the right and I will shoot the one on the left. You got that buddy?" She whispered top the floating droid beside her.

The highly modified ID10 seeker droid chirped its understanding and silently floated to the top of the corridor ceiling so it could sneak up on the troopers with less chance of being seen.

A few seconds later, after quickly checking up and down the corridors to make sure (as much as she could) that no one was in earshot. She fired and managed to score a direct hit on the side of the stormtroopers neck just between his helmet and chest armour. At the exact same instant, Dio hit the other with an electric discharge from his extension arms. The charge was strong enough to stop a heart or at the very least knock him out for a few hours.

Both men (women?) fell to the floor and their weapons clattered out of their hands and rolled to a stop on the floor. Zay quickly dashed forward and snatched up one of the rifles and held it the ready in case someone came to investigate the noise. But thankfully she seemed to have been lucky as no one came running to check on the blaster bolt noise.

Once she was certain that an entire army of the white ghouls was not going to come running at her. She turned and opened the doors to the cells.

Shriv emerged and gave a nod and a thanks as he tenderly touched at some clearly fresh bruises on his face. It looked like his hosts had not been gracious ones.

Meanwhile her mother practically tackled her as she burst from her cell to take her daughter in her arms. "Zay!, I thought you were dead. I thought I had lost you too." Her mother whisper in to her hair as she gripped her as tightly as she could.

Zay also returned the embrace just as eagerly. She had not been certain if her mom was even alive. She had seen a shuttle take off from the tower where they had been before the Corvus had been blasted out of the sky. But that could just as easily have been the shuttle for the First Order personnel. For all she knew the First Order could have killed them then and there. But she could not even check the tower before it was engulfed in the fire storm unleashed by the star destroyer's cannons that blasted the Jinata security forces left.

She had only been able to escape by taking out a patrolling pilot and taking his TIE fighter. After that she had gone with the only half-baked plan she could think of to rescue her mom and Shriv. Which somehow had succeeded!

Wait?!

She pulled away slightly and looked her mother square in the face. "Mom, what did you mean 'you thought you had lost me too'?" She asked. She already had an idea, but she did not want to consider that. She needed to hear it from her mom before she would even allow that thought to take root in her mind.

Iden looked stricken and from behind Zay, Shriv looked sympathetic. She had clearly not intended to let that slip. She definitely did not want to have this conversation so soon or in the middle of a First Order star destroyer. But clearly this needed to be said if Zay was going to remain focused for this mission.

She took a deep breath and swallowed her own emotions from what she was about to say. "Honey. Your dad is dead." She said, feeling it was better to just have it out and said. Even if saying it made her choke up. But then again she had not really had time to process her husband's death since Hask gloatingly admitted to his murder.

Zay took a step back. As if the impact of the words caused a physical impact to her body that forced her back a step. She started to shake her head as if to deny the words. But the motion never quite materialised. Maybe that was a sign that she had been bracing herself for this news since her dad's disappearance.

"What?" She asked shakily. Her mind still trying to process what she had just been told. And her emotions were all fighting for dominance right now. Grief, anger, rage, denial, blame. All of them were struggling to be preeminent in her mind. But until one of them won out she was cast adrift in the sea of feelings.

Iden pressed on as she felt that she needed to say this quickly for both Zay's emotional state and her own. "We were wrong about Gleb. It was Hask who killed your father." She said, her words becoming a snarl by the end of her sentence.

Zay was now completely confused. "Hask is alive?"

She had heard of Gideon Hask from both her parents. They had told her that he had been their closest friend in their Imperial days on Inferno squad. But towards the end of the war with Operation Cinder in effect. He had remained loyal to the Empire and had refused to speak out against the actions of the Imperial High Command. Later he had also refused to defect to the Rebellion and had stood against them in several battles after that on Bespin and Jakku where he supposedly died.

Her parents had not talked about him often. But when they had they had expressed regret that he had died on Jakku. They said that they had wished it had not ended like that between them and him. That to this day they were not certain if Hask had betrayed them or if they had betrayed Hask.

And now suddenly she was being told that a dead man had killed her dad from beyond the grave?! She was starting to wonder if the stress of the recent events had caused her to lose her mind.

"Yes, but not for long. He is on board this star destroyer and we are going to end him for good." Iden snarled as she bent down to pick up the rifle of the other fallen stormtrooper. Shriv however looked at her like he could not credit his ears.

"Iden?" He asked in a tone a voice that was part questioning and part incredulous. Zay looked just as shocked. "You want to go after Hask?!" She asked just to make certain that they had heard right.

Her mother was a trained and experienced pilot and commando soldier. She had fought in dozens of battles and never taken a scratch. She had a tactical mind that had been honed in the crucible of war and she was never one to jump into a situation without at least three backup plans in case the situation changed. There had been times when her strategies were dangerous, but they were always the least risk for the greatest reward.

But now here she was suggesting that they fight through the crew of an entire star destroyer with thousands of personnel and who knows how many droids single handed. Then to just march up to one of their senior commanders and just shot him? Like it would be that easy?

What her mother was suggesting was insane. And while her mother could be called many things, a crazy person had never been one of them.

"Hurry up we need to move!" Iden declared as she made to march down the corridor. But Shriv interposed himself between her and the entrance while Zay tried to break through the fog of grief and anger that had descended on her mother's heart.

"Mom stop!" She said and the tone forced her mother to turn back as Zay continued. "Killing one person will not change what happened to dad." She said while trying to keep the emotion from her voice as she mentioned her dad. She was trying to get her mother to be logical and to do that she could not let her own grief and anger leak through.

Iden did stop as she stared at her daughter. The aggression and need to move faded slightly as she walked to the wall and leaned against it as the weight of today proved to much.

After a few seconds of silence as Iden gathered herself she began to speak. Though neither Shriv nor Zay could tell if she was talking to them or to herself. "If I had just been willing to fight. If I'd just joined the Resistance, then none of this would be happening." She whispered as if in mourning for the lost possibilities.

Zay made to move towards her mom to give her a hug or to offer some form of comfort. But Shriv beat her to it. "You heard Hask. The First Order has been planning this for a long time. And Admiral Kuvira planned for all this to happen. Almost everything the New Republic and even the Resistance has done played directly into her hands. I know your good Iden, but I don't think your joining the Resistance would have made that much of a difference." He reassured her. He allowed his voice to gain some humour as he spoke and was glad to see Iden''s lips twitch upwards at the joke at her expense.

Zay took another step forward. "None of this is your fault." She stated in a tone of voice that allowed no argument. "And its not to late to make a difference."

Shriv nodded. "The Resistance need all the help it can get. We are on board this ship with who knows how much invaluable information in its data banks. If we can learn how powerful the First Order really is. Plus, any information on the fleets, command structure and especially that doomsday weapon of theirs."

Iden interrupted. "Then the Resistance might just have a chance." Iden took a few seconds to digest all the information and to allow a plan to begin to take root in her mind and she looked at the deceased troopers that were still lying in the hallway. "Okay, Okay. Grab their weapons and put their bodies in the cells. Then we need to find a data terminal or a communications hub. If this star destroyer design is in anyway similar to the Imperial class I think I might have an idea about where to go."

Once the weapons were gathered and the bodies were concealed they made their way out of the brig and began to search for their target.

 **Kuvira – POV**

The incessant noises of her commlink were heard as Kuvira found herself floating back to consciousness. She was aware of the warm feeling of her bed and the silent but very present whispers in her head to turn off her commlink and return to sleep. To just this once, let someone else handle whatever was amiss.

She had been trying to train this behaviour out of herself for most of her life. But so far without success. She was not able to completely silence such thoughts and feelings within herself. But still duty called.

With a reluctance that she shamefully found very strong. She forced herself to open her eyes and focus them on the chrono display next the bed that she was lying in on the quarters that she had been provided on the Retribution.

She had been asleep for just over four hours. Not ideal but enough to function normally for a while. But it was not enough time to reach Starkiller Base from Vardos. The journey should take another one to two hours even at lightspeed. That could only mean something unexpected had happened. This knowledge refocused her thoughts and brought the still chiming commlink back to her attention.

With her eyes still blurry and her black hair undone from its usual military braid and splayed across the pillow she was certainly not going to activate the holo setting on her commlink. So, as she grabbed it from the bed side table she set it to audio only and activated it, silencing the increasingly annoying incoming transmission alarm.

"Admiral, I apologies for disturbing you." Pyre's voice came through the speakers.

Kuvira rubbed her eyes as she sat up in bed as the blanket fell away and she readjusted the straps on her tank up that she routinely slept in. "It is fine Commander, what is it?" She asked in a tone that was professional but clearly not in the mood for idle conversation.

Pyre clearly grasped that and immediately continued with his report. "Admiral, the prisoners from Vardos have escaped their cells and they are currently in the hyperdrive generator chambers. We cannot be certain, but my troopers have reported that they have progressed through an armoury and appear to have stolen a large number of explosives. They are attempting to disable the hyperdrive."

That report blasted the cobwebs of sleep from Kuvira's mind as she jumped out of bed, landing with her bare feet on the cold floor and strode over to the wardrobe that housed her clothes. "How did they escape the brig Commander?" She demanded

"It appears that somehow their accomplice. The girl who commandeered the TIE fighter. Managed to get on board the ship before we made the jump to lightspeed. From there she freed them from the brig. We have run a security check and it seems that there was an impact in the bowels of the ship's engines. At the time it was mistaken for system damage due to the hyperdrive's activation." Pyre reported.

Kuvira was forced to pause and put the comlink down as she stepped into her trousers and pulled them over her combat briefs. Once done she snatched it up again. "I want the security officer's and the maintenance officer's in charge of that section of the ship disciplined, severely Commander. If neither of them could not notice a TIE fighter crashing into the engines then they have no place on our fleet." She ordered as she pulled on her boots.

"Yes Admiral. Commander Hask is heading down to the hyperdrive chamber with fresh troops. He anticipates that he will have the pair of them in custody soon." Pyre reported confidently.

Kuvira paused as she was adjusting her belt. "The pair of them? What about the third member of their party?" She inquired.

Pyre paused as he seemed to consult something. Then he returned to the conversation. "According to our reports and security footage. The Duro's Shriv Suurgav is not with them in then hyperdrive chamber. It is just the traitor Iden and her daughter." he reported.

Ignoring for the moment the feeling she got about how two combatants (one of them a half-trained girl) had managed to hold off dozens of her soldiers. Kuvira considered all the details she had been told. After a few seconds she made her decision. "Commander, I want soldiers stationed at all hangers. I want the magnetic locks on fighters activated and the bay doors sealed. Activate the tractor beams and the ventral cannons. I want them ready to use at a moments notice." She commanded while pulling on her black undershirt and grabbing her uniform jacket.

"Yes Admiral." Pyre's voice sounded confused at her seemingly random orders. But to his credit he did not ask questions before relaying her instructions. With that in mind, Kuvira felt she could elaborate.

"The prisoners know that they cannot escape the ship while its in hyperspace. The only reason for them to be attempting to sabotage the hyperdrive is to force us into real space again. But they are not going anywhere without a ship of their own. Which I can only surmise, is what Shriv Suurgav is currently doing while the other two attack the hyperdrive. So, we are going to limit his options as much as possible and ensure we are ready to apprehend him. If they do manage to escape the star destroyer I want us ready to either recapture them with the tractor beams or destroy them with the ventral cannons.

Pyre's voice came back with a hint of admiration in its tone. "Understood Admiral, it will be as you say." Pyre confirmed.

Kuvira nodded as she finished getting dressed and grabbed her blaster pistol and its holster which she quickly added to her belt. She also grabbed her vibro knife and placed it in the compartment on the back of her belt. And she took her spare vibro knife and slipped it into the concealed holster in her boot.

There was no time for such luxuries as doing her hair. So, she simply gave it a brush back to ensure it looked presentable and did not impede her field of vision. Unleashed from its tight style sit fell down past her shoulder blades in ebony waves.

"Tell Commander Hask I am on my way to the Hyperdrive chamber. I will see to the defeat of Iden Versio and her daughter personally." She declared with all the strength and intent a lifetime of military command had given her.

Pyre started and managed to get his objection in before she closed down the comlink. "Admiral, with all respect, I must protest! You should not put yourself in danger for something so trivial. If you were to be lost it would be a great blow to the First Order." Pyre protested, trying to keep his voice deferential while making his disapproval clearly known.

Kuvira strode through the doorway to her chambers and made her way to the turbo lift. As she did so the two red Pretorian guards moved away from their position at the door and fell in behind her. "Your concern's have been noted Commander. But I feel the need to see to this personally. And if the First Order is so fragile that it cannot survive in the event of my death. Then it does not deserve to survive."

With that she switched off the comlink, entered the lift and it the console for the engineering levels.

 **Iden – POV**

"It's all clear, want to do the honours. Plant the last charge?" Zay said in a gleeful voice as they moved towards the last pylon that they needed to blow before the star destroyer would get pulled out of hyperspace.

Iden moved ahead of her to the pylon while pulling out the ion detonators that she and Zay had appropriated from the star destroyer's armoury that they had fought through on their way to the hyperdrive chamber. Iden was never one to celebrate a victory before it was won. And she knew that even if they succeeded in taking the star destroyer out of hyperspace. They still needed Shriv to have a ship ready and waiting for them to escape at a moments notice.

The fact that they had not heard from him yet made her worried. But she and Zay had their own job to focus on. And she was going to take some joy in damaging Hask's own ship.

"Sure, then we find Shriv and get out of here." She replied and moved towards the pylon. She pulled out the final detonator and began to set it on the pylon and activate the armed sequence. As she was just finishing she heard hurried footsteps behind her and turned around to see what had caused Zay to move so rabidly.

"Zay?" She asked. But her neutral tone and mood instantly fell away when she heard her daughter cry out and begin to struggle with an unseen assailant. "Let me go!"

Turning Iden raised her weapon at the ready only to see that bastard Hask had her daughter in a choke hold while using her as a human shield while aiming his blaster pistol to her head.

"No!" Iden screamed and raised her blaster rifle to take aim right between Hask's eyes. She would have been more satisfied if his face did not immediately turn into a grin. Like that was the reaction he was hoping to receive from her.

"That's the Iden I remember." He said gleefully as he pulled his weapon away from Zay's head and aimed it right at her chest. "Bold, unpredictable!" He shouted. He kept his blaster aimed right at her, but he didn't fire it. Instead they just stood there in a standoff with neither seeming to be willing to make the killing shot.

"Use your weapon. Come on use your weapon!" Hask yelled as he brought the weapon back to Zay's temble. Iden's eyes widened in confusion. Was Hask so driven by revenge, so filled with hatred of her that he wanted her to kill him as long as he got to take her daughter with him? Maybe he just wanted this thing between them to end? Maybe he had been carrying this grudge against his former friends for so long, the last thirty years. That he was just tired of it and wanted it resolved one way or another.

Whatever the reasons behind his ramblings. Iden was not going to give him whatever he wanted while her daughter's life was as stake.

She threw her arms out to the side with her rifle handing lose in her hand. But she did not drop the weapon entirely.

"Zay, Its okay." She reassured. But when she saw that Hask was not buying her halfway surrender. She reluctantly threw her weapon aside and watched as the rifle felled down in to the abyss of the hyperdrive chamber.

But despite that Hask seemed to be….. disappointed?

With a scoff of disgusted he took his blaster pistol away from Zay's head and aimed it at her. "Motherhood really has made you weak." He said with scorn.

It was then that Iden understood what Hask had been looking for when he had called on her to use the rifle and shoot him regardless of Zay's presence.

He had wanted to see the Iden that he remembered. He had wanted to see the efficient pragmatic leader of Inferno squad. The one that had always gotten the mission finished regardless of the dangers or the losses. He had wanted to see the Iden that he had served with and fought beside and looked up too.

He had wanted to see his friend again. Even if it was for a brief moment in the act of her shooting him.

But she had denied him that by forsaking the mission to save Zay. And that act, filled Hask with sadness and with disgust at what she had become.

With a look of condescension, he prepared to pull the trigger and sent the bolt of super-heated plasma into Iden's face.

But then Zay, acting like a trained warrior. Dug her elbow into Hask's unprotected stomach and sent him doubling over in surprise more then pain. As he did so she grabbed at the hand holding the blaster pistol and began to struggle with it.

Before Hask could recover Zay sent her elbow slamming into the underside of Hask's chin sending him reeling back with a cry of pain. Zay followed up her attach by sending the same elbow slamming down on Hask's forearm along the main nerve that caused his army to jerk involuntarily and made the blaster pistol fire into the durusteel walkway.

While Zay showed that she had clearly been paying more attention to her mother's self-defence lessons then Iden had ever realised. Iden ran towards the pair of them and tackled Hask to the floor while sending Zay sprawling to the floor to the side of them. The force of the fall caused her to roll of the edge of the walkway, but she managed to halt her fall to her death just in time by grabbing the rim of the bridge.

Iden meanwhile landed on top of Hask and she immediately straightened up and sent her fists crashing into the side of his face, one after the other.

Hask was dazed but he recovered with the speed of a life time in the military and sent his own fist into Iden's nose. He then followed up by grabbing her vest with both hands and pulled, bringing her face smashing into the hard bone of his forehead. Blood gushed on both his face and Iden's as the cartilage in her nose gave way and her nose broke.

Iden reeled back from the pain. But even through that she grabbed Hask's head with both hands and sent slammed it into the hard steel of the walkway. Then she repeated it a second, third and fourth time. Leaving Hask dazed and his head pounding.

Hask could not get his arms up to break the hold Iden had on his head so he did the only think he could think off in his brain rattled state. He turned his head to face Iden's left hand and bit down as hard as he could, sinking his teeth into the flesh of her hand.

Iden screamed in pain as reared trying to break Hask's hold but failed. She then sent her right fist slamming into Hask's face again and again, trying to force him into releasing his bite. Eventually Hask was unable to maintain his grip any longer with an increasingly swollen eye and a broken nose of his own. He eventually was forced to release his bite but not before he wrenched his head to the side. The jerking movement tore the flesh from Iden's hand and took away a fingernail.

Iden screamed anew and in a flash of anger she sent her uninjured hand into a fist and propelled it with all her might into Hask's groin. Her own screams were soon joined by Hask's howls of agony. But Iden was not finished as she pulled her knife free from her belt and slammed it into Hask's left foreleg, just missing the artery and bring more howls of pain from his throat.

Hask rolled away with pain shooting through his body and blood flowing from his leg. But even so he used the motion to lash out with his right leg and sent it smashing in to Iden's kidneys that caused her to reel backwards. Using the motion of Hask's attack, Iden rose back to her feet and grabbed her savaged hand as the blood pumped from the bite mark.

Soon Hask regain his feet (albeit slightly hunched over and favouring his uninjured leg) and glared at Iden his eyes burning with hate. "Yes, that is the Iden I remember. The one who was willing to resort to anything for victory!" He snarled.

Iden returned the look with one of pure loathing as she straightened up and did her best to block out the searing pain from her hand. "That Iden Versio died a long time ago. It is just a shame that Gideon Hask did not die with her!" She snarled.

Hask spat out a glob of blood and pulled his own knife free from its sheath. "Well come on then, Rebel scum. Let's finish this!" He shouted as he lunged forward.

Iden returned the gesture and threw herself forward to give her blade a new home in Hask's throat!

But then she felt a searing pain in her left shoulder blade and then two more impacts slammed into her back that caused her to lose her balance and slam into the cold metallic floor. Her knife fell from her suddenly nerveless fingers and she felt the pain in her shoulder double with the shock wearing off.

Hask meanwhile caught himself in his leap and regained his balance. Through Iden's bleary gaze he was staring behind her. And then he heard a voice she was rabidly learning to hate cut through the sudden silence that the end of the battle had left.

"That is quite enough of that." The voice of Admiral Kuvira announced.

Iden forced her body to roll over as she looked behind her. Kuvira was standing behind her and just in front of the hyperdrive pylon. She looked like she had been dragged out of bed. Her hair was hanging loose behind her, her eyes were slightly red, and she was not wearing her Admiral's greatcoat. Instead she was clad in the standard black First Order officers' uniform.

In her right hand was her blaster pistol. Still aimed directly at Iden. In her left hand was the Ion detonator that Iden had planted on the pylon. Based on the lack of flashing lights on the device. It had clearly been deactivated.

But what really drew Iden's attention was Zay, on her knees with her hands on her head and two stormtroopers with their rifles aimed at her with point blank range. She looked up at her mom with a look of hopelessness and even Iden was struggling to think of a way to escape from this one.

In the end she settled for what she could do. Which was alert Shriv to their situation and maybe get enough of warning to him so that he might still escape back to the Resistance. So, she subtle activated her comlink and set it to audio.

Meanwhile Kuvira was looking to the bloodied Hask. Who stood to attention (as much as he was able with his injuries), but he had a definite look like he had been robbed of his moment.

"I apologies for interrupting Commander. But this has gone on long enough and we must bring this to a close before we reach Starkiller Base." Kuvira said to Hask who, after a moment, nodded his acceptance.

Iden then turned and addressed the Admiral. "You can defeat us, but it doesn't matter. Shriv has already escaped and he will give the Resistance the intel it needs to destroy you and the entire First Order!" Iden growled, putting as much conviction as she could into her bluff as she could. If she convinced the First Order that Shriv had already escaped then maybe they would be more lax with security. And when they came out of hyperspace he could really escape back to General Organa.

Kuvira however only looked at her with sardonic humour. "Mr Suurgav has already escaped you say. Well that is a strange phenomenon because…." She trailed off and dropped the useless ion detonator to the floor. Then she raised her hand and snapped her fingers with a click that echoed through the chamber.

Instantly the door behind Iden and Hask whooshed open. When Iden turned to see who had entered the room. Her heart sank like a stone in the oceans of Castilon.

Shriv, bloodied and bruised was being dragged into the room by the two red Praetorian guards that she had seen on Vardos, each one had their vibro-voulge in their free hand and each of them was activated and ready.

Shriv looked up at Iden and Zay through his bruised eyes and offered a smile that had no mirth behind it. "Sorry guys, they caught me in the fighter hanger." He whispered with an exhausted tone.

As Iden and Zay looked on with increasing despair. Kuvira spoke up again. "We knew that if you two where here then he would be going for a ship to escape. So, I sent my best to apprehend him. Oh, and as for that intel you said he had. I believe your droid has that data." She paused as if suddenly remembering something. "But I suppose I should say. The droid had that data." She said with the tone of victory beginning to creep into her voice.

At first Iden was confused by what the Admiral meant. Then she remembered the two impacts to her back and she quickly released Dio from his compartment on her back manually. The sound of him crashing to the floor instead of his usual hovering told her all she needed too.

Turing she saw Dio on the ground. Two blaster wounds were visible on his body casing. Inside she could see melted circuitry and sparks flying on as the acrid smell of burning metal and wires wafted up from the little droid. The droid made no sounds or motion as he lay there on the ground and it was apparent that he never would again.

Iden could not help herself. She reached out and picked up the faithful droid and held it in her hands. She ignored the pain from the electrical burns she was receiving, or the bite wound on her hand as she looked at the droid as her eyes began to well up with tears.

Some might call her crazy for mourning a droid. But she could not help it. Dio had been with her since the days of Inferno squad and the Empire. The droid had then followed her into the rebellion and had been her constant companion for over three decades. He had been Zay favourite toy as a baby, constantly floating around as she tried to grab him and laughing in delight when he flew over her.

And now he was gone and the data with him.

To Iden it was like watching a dear friend die.

No. There was nothing 'like' about it. She was watching a dear friend die.

She was broken from her grief as she heard Kuvira talking to her troops and Hask. "It is clear from the brig's security footage that Mrs and Miss Versio are not and have never been an actual part of the Resistance and will have no additional intelligence beyond what Mr Suurgav can provide us. Dispose of them and take Mr Suurgav back to the brig." Kuvira said as she turned to walk away.

As Iden watched the stormtroopers and Hask raise and aim their blasters at Zay and herself respectively. She then through all pride to the winds and called out to the Admiral. "Wait, kill me if you want but I beg you to spare my daughter." She pleaded.

Kuvira turned around to regard her with confusion. "Why would I do that?" She asked simply and seemingly with genuine curiosity.

"Because she is innocent in all this. She never betrayed the Empire like I did, and you have just said she is not part of the Resistance. There is no reason to kill her." Iden said desperately.

But Kuvira was not moved by her pleading. "I acknowledge that she is not part of the Resistance. But innocent? I hardly think so. She has already killed many of my pilots, my soldiers and destroyed First Order property. Not even counting what she and you attempted to do here today." She said with a tone that showed she was not impressed with Iden's reasoning.

Iden started to become desperate. "She only did those things because I led her into this. She would never have done it if not for me. And if you let her go she will not hinder the First Order again." She claimed while looking at Zay silently telling her to stay quiet.

Kuvira however looked incredibly doubtful. "Is that so? Well then…"

She walked over to Zay and stopped right in front of her. She looked down on the young woman who looked back up at her with fear but with undisguised hostility. "Well Miss Zay. Is what your mother says accurate? If we were to release you, would you leave and live your life away from the Resistance and the First Order? Will you lead a life of peace in the galaxy and play no part in the conflict? And if the First Order wins, you will not join any insurgent groups? Or will you dedicate your life to avenging your mother and father and destroying the First Order at all costs?" She asked with a deadly serious tone.

Zay looked into the Admiral's burning green eyes. And then she looked at her mom who was staring at her with pleading eyes silently willing her to say what the Admiral wanted to hear.

Then she looked at the bloodied and bruised Shriv who was still in semi-conciousness held by the Praetorian guards. At the Resistance symbol on his shoulder pad that was streaked with his green blood.

Finally, she turned back to the Admiral and gave her a defiant glare. "You already know what my answer is!" She snarled and then she spat at Kuvira's face, though the glob fell short and splattered on her boots instead.

As Iden looked fearful and Shriv looked defeated but proud. Kuvira looked at the girl and then at the glob of spit on her boot. Then she turned back to the girl.

"Thank you for not insulting either of us by lying." She said softly. Then she looked at Hask and her guards and gave a short nod. The stormtroopers took aim at the back of Zay's head and she heard Hask behind her raising his weapon.

But she and Zay were only looking at each other. No words were exchanged but the meaning in their eyes was clear. 'I love you'.

Iden wanted to close her eyes but she would not abandon Zay in this moment. She would be here for her till the end and offer any strength and comfort she could. She would not falter, or cry or scream in rage. She would go to her death with dignity and she would go to her death with a daughter she could not be prouder of.

She saw the stormtrooper fire his blaster. She saw the blot slam into Zay's head and saw her jerk as the plasma burrowed into her skull. But she was spared anything more as she heard Hask give a noise of satisfaction and heard his own blaster fire.

Then the world fell away. And Iden Versio welcomed whatever peace the void offered.

 **Kuvira - POV**

Kuvira looked up from the two corpses and turned to Hask. "Place Mr Suurgav in his cell and place him in restraints." She commanded. "Continue to interrogate him on everything he knows about the Resistance."

Shriv looked up from the corpses of Iden and Zay and whispered one word. "Murderer."

Kuvira looked back at him with a flash of anger. "You know Mr Suurgav. I do get incredibly sick of you people's self-righteousness and hypocrisy. When we kill our enemies, you label it as murder. But when you kill your enemies it is called 'necessary' or 'for the cause'." She spat in clear distaste.

She turned back to the Praetorian guards. "On second thought. I have no interesting chasing him down if he escapes again." She said as regarded the Duro's once more. "Break his spinal column and take him to the secure med bay." She ordered in a voice like a Hoth blizzard.

With that she turned around to head back to her chambers for another hour of sleep before they reached Starkiller.

As she entered the turbo lift. The Duro's began to scream.

 **Authors Note**

 **100,000 words! That is a milestone every fanfic hopes to reach. Now lets see if we can get as many reviews.**


	17. Chapter 17 - Darkness Falls

**TishaLiz: Thanks for the review. As always they are greatly appreciated. The chapter was not originally intended to be so long. But as ai got closer to 100,000 words I wanted to reach that threshold. Kylo Ren and Kuvira will be meeting up in the next few chapters. I am still juggling the various idea's I have for their reunion. But I will do my best to make it a story that lives up to the expectations.**

 **Rhyming With Oranges: Thank you very much for your review. You said many very meaningful and inspiring things. I wish I could cover and respond to all of them individually, but I will simply say that I greatly enjoyed reading your review. And I found your words very meaningful and I felt very privileged by what you wrote. With that said I will continue to try and live up to your expectations and I hope you will enjoy this and future chapters.**

 **Artemis Persephone Jackson: Glad to hear it. I hope you find this chapter just as engrossing.**

 **buzzsaw935: I know. I had a lot to cover based on the game but in order to live up to Kuvira's personality and military sensibilities I have to make sure that Iden and Zay were defeated. Then I was faced with the fact that Kuvira is not going to be an idiotic 'bad guy' who captures their enemy again and again only for them to escape and wreck further havoc. Once Kuvira learned there was no advantage to be gained from keeping Iden and Zay alive she wanted them eliminated. I also chucked in the violence and emotions to make the chapter interesting and to make sure that Hask and Iden got the final showdown their story deserved.**

 **Digital hell 12: Glad to hear it. I hope that you will like what comes next. If you have any suggestions or questions please review and let me know.**

 **Shade Yes I know. If I am going to sum up Kuvira in one word it would be practical. She will make peace when it is in the First Order's interests. She will kill and maim and torture without hesitation if it the best course of action. She will show mercy to her enemies if she feels it will pay off in the long term. In the case of Iden and Zay she has no reason to keep them alive if they have no information on the Resistance that she can use. And unlike the serotypical 'villian' she is not going to allow them any chance to cause trouble in the future. She wants them taken out of the equation. In regard to Shriv, she wants his information, but she must stop him from escaping. The most practical solution? Make sure he can never run away again.**

 **Chapter 17 – Darkness Falls**

 **Resergent Class Star destroyer – Retribution**

 **Kuvira - POV**

"Admiral we are coming out of Hyperspace 1,153,200 kilometres from Starkiller base." The tactical officer reported as Grand Admiral Kuvira strode into the bridge. Her uniform was pristine and her black great coat billowed out behind her with the telltale signs of having been freshly pressed and steam cleaned. Her newly polished boots shined out as they strode across the bridge walkway with an audible rhythm.

The Admiral herself was equally manicured. Her hair cleaned and tightly done up in its usual military braid. Her eyes were tired and faded from strain and exhaustion not so long ago. Now they were blazing with purpose and conviction once again. They were sober and alert.

"Maintain distance from the planet until we get an understanding of what is happening on the surface. I will not be caught in an explosion." She commanded in a voice that was full of conviction and purpose. Now that she had been given time to rest and recuperate, (baring the unfortunate matter in the hyperdrive chamber). She was ready and eager to resolve this situation on Starkiller, and even more eager to remove the cancerous infection that was Armitage Hux from the First Order.

As soon as the words were out of her mouth the star destroyer jolted and the blue swirling tunnel of hyperspace shattered into then many streaks of starlight that stretched across the viewport. Soon those fell away too and the obsidian coloured ether of space with the white pinpricks of the stars filled the viewscreen as the ship came back into real space.

Starkiller base appeared in the view instantly. The iconic planet and the unmistakable firing barrel of the planetary weapon were easily visible even from this distance.

From their current position everything looked peaceful. The fleet was no longer in oribit and they were too far away to see any signs of life or activity with their naked eyes. Even the presence of the massive continent sized gun in the centre of the planet could not take away the strange sense of peace that seemed present around the planet.

But Kuvira understood that in that moment. The greatest weapon of the First Order and possibly all of history. The culmination of decades of hard work was at stake. She also knew that this was a pivotal moment in her life. She could not explain it, especially not to her own normally logical and analytical mind. But she had a sense that a great part of her final destiny would be realised here.

Kuvira had always scoffed at the idea of destiny and prophecy. She felt that the whole concept was merely a crutch for those who preferred to wait for cosmic forces to decide their fates, rather then take their fates into their own hands. She knew she did not have her destiny written in the stars in the sky or on the lines of her palm. She had not asked the Force or any other power to make her a Grand Admiral. She had not asked the powers that be to grant her the many victories that she had won over the course of her life.

She had done all that. Just as the people who followed her orders had done that to ensure that they gained what they wanted.

In her mind. That was the great difference between herself and the insipid Jedi Order. The Jedi saw what they wanted, and they waited for the Force to provide or guide it to them.

She saw what she wanted, and she took it. With whatever means and her disposal. She would not wait for her destiny to he handed to her like a gift-wrapped life day present. She would forge her own destiny with nothing more then her own blood and sweat. She forged the galaxy to bend to her own will.

In the end, that was the core of what she believed in. Those with the vision and the will to make what they wanted a reality would always be destined to rule.

The Supreme Leader had the vision. She had the will. Now they just needed to make the galaxy bend to their designs.

"Admiral, we have received communications from Starkiller command." The comms officer reported. "They are saying that they have about four dozen Resistance fighter craft still attacking the planetary oscillator with turbo lasers and proton torpedoes. So far the oscillator has taken no serious damage beyond the armoured outer shell. The local TIE fighter squadrons have been deployed as well as the seeker missile launchers.

The garrison commanders confirm that a dozen Resistance fighters have already been shot down. But casualties are high, and the base commanders are concerned that if the oscillator continues to take fire it will lead to minor damage. This could in turn complicate the weapon." The comms officer reported as he began to grow visibly nervous at the thought of the Starkiller weapon detonating so close to them.

Kuvira nodded her understanding. But then she asked the question that she was very keen to know. "Where is General Hux in all this?" She asked in a voice that betrayed nothing.

The comms officer relayed the question to the planet garrison commanders and then waited for the response to come back. "He is within the command centre Admiral." He replied.

Kuvora nodded. "Excellent, inform the General that he and the rest of the senior commanders are to evacuate if they have not already done so. They are to board their ships and head to the Retribution. They will be safe within the warship."

She paused. "Also make it clear that this is an order, not a suggestion. I want Hux and the senior staff on the Retribution immediately." She commanded in a tone that brooked no argument. "I also want my Praetorian guards to be assigned to General Hux. His safety is to be their prime concern." She added flatly.

As the comms officer nodded and began to relay her orders she considered the situation. There was a very good chance that the Resistance attack would fail without her help.

The oscillator's armoured construct was ensuring that no damage was being taken by the delicate machinery within the giant machine. The Resistance fighters were superior in skill to most of her own pilots (she reluctantly admitted), but they were outnumbered and in a long battle, quantity eventually won out over quality.

As it stood the Resistance was attacking a target that they could not damage. All the while they were slowly being whittled down by enemy fire. Meanwhile the weapon would be ready to fire very shortly (if the looks of the system's sun was any indicator) and when it did the main Resistance base would be obliterated.

To any reasonable viewpoint it seemed that the First Order would win this battle without her having to do anything. Baring the unexpected or the miraculous, their total victory was imminent.

But the unexpected and the miraculous had been the Resistance's and the Rebel Alliance's trump pazaak card too many times in the past.

She had seen time and time again how they snatched victory from the jaws of defeat or managed to escape an assumed perfect net, only to cause trouble later.

And therefore, she would not consider this battle won until every last Resistance fighter in the sky of Starkiller was destroyed and reduced to ash and bone.

She turned to Hask, who was standing to the left of her on the bridge. The commander had been very quiet and subdued after the final confrontation with the now deceased Iden Versio and her daughter in the hyperdrive chamber. She supposed that was to be expected after all that had transpired. He may have hated her and she him, but they had once been very close. To see a person like that die. Even more, so to be the one to kill her. That would take some time to adjust to.

The commander was also favouring his uninjured leg. His wounds had been treated and his broken nose had been seen to by the med droids. His stab wound in his leg was wrapped with a bacta infused bandage that would inject the healing fluid directly into his injury. It would prevent infection and ensure that the wound healed much faster then it would otherwise.

"Commander, the ship is yours. I expect you to monitor the situation on the planet closely. I also want you to ensure that all the evacuees from the base are properly accommodated." She ordered as she turned to leave the bridge. As she did she gestured to the aide standing to attention on the side.

"Order the hanger crews to prep my TIE interceptor for flight and have squadrons Alpha and Gamma scrambled and launched from the ship to engage the enemy immediately" She relayed never breaking her stride as she did so.

Hask watched her leave the hanger with a small sigh and a familiar sense of resignation. Grand Admiral Kuvira was famous for her willingness to fight the enemy personally. Be it in a TIE fighter or on the front lines in battle or on the deck of her command ship. Kuvira was capable of leading her army and fleet anywhere.

It was certainly effective to inspire their stormtroopers and it gained the respect of many worlds that they annexed to the First Order.

However, it also gave the majority of the high command heart attacks every time she left the safety of the bridge. It was due to a combination of the possible repercussions that would fall on them if the Grand Admiral was killed on their watch. But it was also due to the knowledge that if Kuvira died without a chosen or recommended successor, then the inevitable power struggle could potentially do crippling damage to the First Order.

He did not even want to think on what would happen if that vicious half-mad sociopath Armitage Hux managed to ascend to Kuvira's place. He doubted that would happen as Hux was not respected by his fellow officers. But it was a possibility he did not want to have come to pass.

He could only hope that the Admiral's battle skills would see her through this battle as well. And if the worst did happen. He could only hope that the Supreme Leader would stop a potential power vacuum from doing to much damage.

And so, he stood and watched the Admiral leave the bridge and headed to the hanger to reclaim her TIE interceptor. He had wondered why she had instructed for the TIE fighter to be prepared and fitted with her specifications when she had boarded the star destroyer.

As he turned back to his duties. He could not help but wonder if Admiral Kuvira had a fighter prepped for her every time she came aboard a new ship. Just in case.

Less than ten minutes later. Kuvira stepped down the hall as she made her way through the corridors to the officers and special forces TIE fighters that were prepped in a secure separate facility from the main hanger.

She did not have time to get into her pilot's gear with the battle raging on the surface. Instead she had simply discarded her Admiral's greatcoat as it would be cumbersome within the cockpit. However, she had it folded under her arm as it was sure to be cold on the surface of the planet when the sun was completely gone.

While she had no intentions to land the TIE on the planet. She entertained the possibility that it would become necessary. If she was shot down but survived, for example. She would have a better chance of braving the increasingly cold elements with her coat then without it.

She made her way over the newly commissioned TIE interceptor that was having the fuel cables removed and the final maintenance check's being performed by the hanger crews. It was not her own personal interceptor, which was still docked in the hanger bay of the Reclaimer. But it was the same model and would do for this battle.

The crew workers stepped back from the TIE as she approached and all saluted, as was expected. She nodded to them in appreciation for their work and speed as she walked to the steps that would allow her to enter the fighter.

But just as she placed her boot on the first step she heard a voice behind her. "Grand Admiral, a moment of your time, please." The voice called out.

She turned and she saw it was a young man walking over to her with short cropped blonde hair. He was a junior aide if the insignia on his uniform was accurate. He was carrying sealed metal suitcase at his side that shined in the polished hanger bay.

He made his way over to the Admiral, who stepped of the ladder and turned to face him with an expression on her face that was half expectant and half impatient. She was typically happy to see to matters that needed her attention. But she was about to head into battle and time was an incredibly important commodity.

Clearly the young man recognised that fact and her silent impatience as he came to a stop in front of her and snapped of a quick salute. He did not need to be prompted before he began explaining his presence here.

"I am sorry Grand Admiral, put you requested that this item be delivered to you as soon as it was completed. You stated to bring it 'without delay'." He explained deferentially as he held out the suitcase to Kuvira, who looked at the case with a slightly puzzled realisation.

She recalled that she had indeed said that this item was to be delivered to her. She had ordered its construction when she had arrived on the Retribution just before they had jumped to lightspeed back to Starkiller base. She had known it would be ready by the time they arrived back at Starkiller. But the events with Iden Versio and the Resistance attack had driven it from her mind.

Slowly she took the offered case and dismissed the junior aide with a nod of thanks. He saluted and left the hanger, smiling as he knew he had not made a bad decision in holding her up with something trivial.

Kuvira studied the case for a brief moment. Then she gripped it and began to walk back up the stairs to the TIE fighter.

As she lowered herself into the cockpit she placed her coat and the case in the space behind her pilot's chair. She would ordinarily not take the item with her, much less into battle. But time was off the essence and the two fighter squadrons would nearly be ready to follow her out of the star destroyer and launch themselves into the fray.

She had no time to place it somewhere else and giving it to the hanger crews might distract them (however briefly) from their duties. In a fight the smallest loss in efficiency could be catastrophic and she would not be the root cause of that.

She dismissed all thoughts of the item within the case as she fired up the engines and moved he fighter to the hanger entrance, once she received clearance to depart from the control centre.

As her fighter broke out of the hanger and flew into the ether of space she performed her flight checks and control response times. Everything appeared to be in order. And while the TIE did not have the familiar feel of her own one, it was responsive and well maintained.

With that she gunned the engine and activated the com channel to the thirty fighters that were forming up on her from their own hangers.

"All fighters form up and assume formation G-37 on my wings. Maintain comm discipline and ensure your weapons are active." She commanded in a voice demanded obedience.

She was rewarded with a chorus of confirmation reports from the TIE pilots, all confirming they were ready and standing by.

"The Resistance is trying to destroy the planet's oscillator and they are throwing everything they have at it. If they succeed in destroying it the weapon will implode in on itself and the entire planet will be lost. All our remaining personnel on the planet will die. And all your work to make Starkiller operational will be wasted." She stated in a tone that hinted at the indignity at the situation.

She allowed the pilots to grumble and murmur among themselves in anger, before the two squadron commanders hushed them. She would never be the orator Hux was, but she was satisfied that her pilots understood the nature of this upcoming fight.

"We will not allow that to happen. Follow me now. We will meet this rabble with the iron discipline and strength that the First Order and you all embody. And like leaves against a hurricane they will be swept aside!" She proclaimed proudly in as stirring a voice as she knew.

She was not meet with cheers as the pilots remembered the earlier rebuke about comm chatter. But she could feel their determination as if it was a palpable sensation. It made her feel a firm sense of pride in her pilots and her troopers.

But she shook that away and allowed the cold tactical mind of the Admiral reassert itself. She would allow herself feel pride and make speeches when the battle was won, and not before.

She gripped the controls of her TIE and barked out a final command. "All fighters form up and engage the enemy with all prejudice." She commanded.

With that the thirty-one First Order TIE fighters shot away from the Resurgent class star destroyer and flew towards the planet like a flock of vengeful coruscanti hawkbats.

 **Poe – POV**

Poe swore as he was forced to witness yet another attack run on the First Order oscillator yield absolutely no damage.

His mood was further blackened by his knowledge that the same attack run had cost the life of R-6 and his x-wing as a TIE blasted it from behind. The fighter exploded into atoms that rained down on the oscillator roof down below in a burning rain. He briefly thought that it was fitting. As if the spirit of R-6 and his fighter were trying to attack the oscillator beyond the grave, no matter how feebly.

It was then that he saw another missile from the First Order ground turrets flying towards him at full speed. He pulled his x-wing up into a steep climb that brought him banking into the clouds and narrowly allowed him to miss the missile as it went careening past and slammed into a pursing TIE fighter.

He tried to feel happy about that. One less TIE fighter trying to blast him out of the sky could only be a good thing. The fact that it was blasted down by the First Order should have just added some delicious irony to the situation. But he found he could not summon up the feeling.

Friendly fire was something each pilot lived in fear of. The entire concept was terrifying. Not just at the thought that you might be killed by an accidental shot from your own side. But that you could be the one to inadvertently kill your own comrade and friend.

Even when it happened to the enemy it was hard not to emphasise with the tragedy of the TIE pilot and what his last moments of shock and betrayal must have been like.

Poe pulled himself out of his thoughts as he banked his x-wing to the side and unleashed his turbo lasers on a TIE fighter that streaked past his line of sight while chasing an x-wing. The TIE vanished in a ball of fire as the laser blasts connected and blew the ship to dust.

That was a death he could at least take some pleasure in. However dark that made him feel.

The Resistance had sent almost its entire fighter force on D'Qar and its surrounding bases to this fight. The plan was objected to by some, as it would leave their own base totally defenceless. But thankfully wiser heads had prevailed by pointing out that a billion star-fighters would not save them if that weapon fired at D'Qar.

There was also the fact that their recon ships had detected a massive First Order fleet surrounding the planet in a defensive perimeter. They felt that the more X-wings and A-wings they sent, the greater chance that enough of then would be able to break through the First Order fleet.

That had thankfully not been a problem as they entire fleet was gone by the time their attack force arrived at the planet. He was still trying to puzzle out why that had happened. But everytime he did he found he could not help but imagine where all those ships might have been sent if not here.

For all he knew that fleet could be bombarding Coruscant or Corellia into ash at this very moment. But he could not think on that right now.

He had to focus on his mission. But right now, his main focus was on staying alive as the TIE fighters re-converged and sent green laser blasts raining down on him and the other members of Black Squadron.

He swung his x-wing left and right as he flew low over the dark metal surface of the oscillator, all the while dodging green energy that slammed into the surface structure all round him. He hoped that it might contribute to damaging the oscillator, if in a very small way. But clearly the TIE pilots knew that the structure was much to strong to be affected by their weapons and continued firing away with no restraint.

Poe reached the end of the structure and shot out over the snow-covered ground, kicking up a trail of snow as he streaked past. As he flew, he took aim at a First Order anti-aircraft turret that was even now spewing energy blasts at him and his friends.

It was incredibly difficult to aim his sights while at the same time dodging every which way to avoid being hit. But with a skill born of natural talent and experience he aimed and fired off a series of blasts slamming into the turret which had its barrels blasted off its main structure and started to belch black acrid smoke into the sky.

Poe flew through the rising thick smoke as he pulled hard on his control stick and brought his x-wing into a turn that caused the x-wing's body to groan in protest of the intense g-force. It was a borderline suicidal move for any pilot to attempt. The risk of the fighter breaking in half or losing just one wing was too great.

But Poe knew his x-wing as well as he knew his own body, and he knew what it could take.

The crazy manoeuvre brought his x-wing into a tight turn that was at least 120 degrees and allowed him to suddenly face the three TIE fighters that had been chasing him so doggedly.

Before any of them could even comprehend what had just happened. Poe let fly with his turbo lasers and sent red streaks of energy slamming into the enemy fighters. The enemy trio disintegrated and not a moment to soon as he was forced to fly through the wreckage just as it came apart.

He gave a small whoop in celebration, (making sure that his commlink was muted. He was flight leader after all) and dived down to send more proton torpedoes on the oscillator.

He took careful aim at a still burning spot on the structure. A sign that one of their attack runs had just been detonated on that same spot. He hoped that if he aimed this just right. Then the two impacts on the same spot would do what one could not.

He fired the protons and watched as the blue balls of light slammed into the metal surface and erupted into fire. But as he peeled away to avoid yet another seeker missile from the defence turrets. He could see that the combined blast had no effect.

The oscillator remained undamaged and as he watched he saw another seeker missile collide with another x-wing which shattered into flaming debris.

"Marilo's been hit" The voice of Jessika Pava came over the commlink as she flew her fighter past the spot where Marilo had been killed not seconds before.

Poe cursed silently. He could not let his frustration show to his fighter squadrons. He knew from long experience that a combat leader needed to maintain the calm (almost cockiness) during battle. If he started to show doubt then his people would start to lose their own belief that they can win.

"They take down one of ours, we take down three of theirs. That is how it works." He quipped with his usual humour in his voice.

He heard some sniggers through the intercom as his pilots chortled softly at his joke while forgetting to mute their connections. "But remember these flying Kor slugs are just a distraction. Focus on the oscillator, we need to take this weapon down." He reminded them.

The squadrons rattled off confirmations before they resumed their attacks on not the oscillator and the enemy fighters.

But Poe was starting to feel his own concerns creep into his thoughts.

So far they had not even scratched the oscillator. At least not the part of it that actually mattered. And he had lost nearly a dozen fighters already. Not to mention the fighters that had been destroyed since the first wave of the attack hours before.

It was starting to seem like this battle was hopeless. They had destroyed many enemy fighters, at least enough to equal their own losses. But that was not the point. They could destroy every TIE fighter on this planet, and it would not make a difference if they could not take out the weapon.

Even now he could see the shadows on the ground by the trees and the buildings starting to fade away as the light of the sun began to get noticeably dimmer.

Every second that the light in the sky and across the world get fainter and fainter. Poe felt a little of his resolve fade with it.

He would fight on until the bitter end for the Resistance and the New Republic. He had fought for them for years. And he had always known that there might come a day when he would be called on to make the ultimate sacrifice for the people that he cared for.

But he had always imagined that it would be during a battle that they stood a chance of winning. But unless something changed very soon. He was not sure how they were going to pull this off.

'Apparently no one told the First Order, they were meant to put an exhaust port in the side of that damn oscillator.' He mentally joked in a tone that was half sardonic and half exasperated.

"Black One we have incoming!" Oddy Muva reported in a tone that snapped Poe back to the present. Just in time as he was forced into a barrel roll spin to avoid the simultaneous attacks of both a TIE fighter and one of the seemingly endless seeker missiles.

Poe fought to keep his stomach in the right place as the g-forces worked havoc on his equilibrium. Finally, the attack died down as the TIE fighter was intercepted by one of the A-wings. The pilot managed to score a direct hit on the TIE wing coupling and the explosion sheered off the solar wing from the rest of the TIE.

The fighter immediately went into a screaming dive at an angle of 45 degree straight down. As he watched its descent, he saw the stricken fighter come down on the tree line. The resulting collision tore several tree's up by the roots and ensured that the pilot had no chance of survival.

Poe righted himself and activated his com channel. "Please tell me there are friendly." He asked in a tone that convinced no one he expected that answer.

Before Oddy could respond his instruments light up like fireworks and BB-8 screamed a shrill warning in his headset ear piece.

The next thing he knew the very same A-wing that had saved his life seconds earlier was struck directly in the cockpit by a green blast. The pilot likely never knew what hit them as the fighter disintegrated into shrapnel. Poe took some small comfort in that.

All around him he saw green blasts falling out of the sky like rain and bombarding the Resistance forces as they broke off all their attack runs and desperately scrambled for cover.

As Poe watched he saw the new swarm of black TIE fighter reinforcments shooting out of the atmosphere like lethal rain. He caught a glimpse of what he assumed was the enemy attack force leader. A black TIE interceptor was at the head of the charge.

As he watched he saw that same interceptor bring down another x-wing as it blasted elongated nose of the x-wing until the nose broke clean off. With its systems damaged and its balance lost from the nose, the x-wing fell from the sky like a rock with smoke marking its path to its death.

Poe quickly returned fire and destroyed two of the new reinforcements as they shot past him on their vertical dive attack. But then he keyed his com link again.

"Break off attack and gain altitude. We can't fight all these TIE's and the ground defences. All pilots regroup in the upper troposphere!" Poe ordered as he pulled Black One into a steep climb into the increasingly darkening sky.

 **Rey - POV**

Rey was momentarily able to forget the bone chilling cold she was enduring in her Jakku clothes as she watched the battle rage over the planet that she was trying to escape from.

She watched the blasts of energy fly like lightning bolts, along with the explosions and fireballs that shook the ground and blazed in the sky, on the trees and in the snow around them. Even as she watched she saw an x-wing get blasted out of the sky and come crashing down just a few metres away from them.

Han staggered forward as best he could on his heavily bandaged legs.

He had apparently refused to be left behind on D'Qar despite the wishes of the medics on the base. Besides as he had pointed out very clearly. No one else was able (or stupid enough) to land the Millennium Falcon on the planet at a calculated lightspeed jump.

So, his legs and knees were wrapped in bandages and he had been treated with kolto injections to deaden the pain and to allow him full (if slower) movement. But in that moment his attention was on the sky as well and not is fragile legs.

"They're in trouble. We can't leave" He said in dismay as he watched the Resistance forces bolt for the upper atmosphere. Fighting tooth and nail all the way.

He turned back to face them with a grim smile emerging on his face. "My friend has a bag full of explosives. Why don't we use them?"


	18. Chapter 18 - Reunions

**TishaLiz: Yeah I knew as I was writing the chapter that it was not going to be one of the best ones. Like you said it was going to be a filler chapter for Kuvira's arrival on Starkiller base and not much else. I added the POV for Poe because I hoped that some battle scenes would make the chapter more appealing. Plus, while I am a First Order supporter. I want to make sure that I am giving some viewpoints from the other side. That is after all a big part of this story. The fact that there is more then one side to the Star Wars conflict. I debated about adding Han especially with his injuries. But I cannot see him allowing anyone else to pilot the falcon to Starkiller base without him. Plus, I honestly do not think any other pilot, (except maybe Poe) being crazy enough to make that lightspeed jump. But I have a plan for the battle outcome that I hope people will like.**

 **Guest: Thank you for your opinion and rest assured I have a plan for the showdown.**

 **wildcat717: Thanks for the review. I do appreciate everyone that I get, and they encourage me to update fast and to make sure that I am taking my readers comments into account. I hope this chapter continues to meet your expectations.**

 **Lady Syndra: Thanks for your comments. I am glad that you left your review before I posted this update as it allowed me to respond to you. I have a plan for Starkiller and I hope that you enjoy this chapter as much as the others now that we are reaching the climax. If you have any other idea's or comments please do let me know I enjoy constructive feedback.**

 **Chapter 18 – Reunions**

 **Starkiller Base**

 **Kylo Ren – POV**

With a final scream of rage, Kylo Ren brought his lightsaber down on the smoking, glowing remains of the wreckage that had been an intact interrogation table moments ago. As the last remains of the table fell to the floor in pieces. Kylo Ren stood still as a statue, hunched over with his lightsaber still active in his two-handed grip, breathing deeply.

Slowly, his anger and rage faded enough to allow him some clarity of thought. The power of the dark side that had rushed through him moments ago, began to ebb. But it did not fade. It never faded away entirely. The dark side was always with him. Which was as it should be, according to his master.

As he regained his decorum he straightened up and deactivated his lightsaber. He stood there for a few moments in the smoking wreckage, as he opened himself up to the force. To allow it to calm his mind and give him greater clarity. Right now, he did not need the burning emotional fire of the dark side. He needed to calm his mind and think the problem through in detail.

This was a hangover from his days with his uncle and his Jedi training. It was something that his grandfather would never have approved of. The dark side was about action and about making the Force bend to your will. In contrast the Jedi were all about emotional neutrality and allowing the force to guide your actions. Uncle Luke would always take the time to remind him that the Jedi were instruments of the Force. Not the other way around.

He had scoffed, even back during his days as a padawan. To be nothing but an instrument of the Force his entire life. To have every action or thought second guessed or questioned about whether this was what the Force wanted instead of himself. To be a mere tool, that the Force used like a chess piece to influence the galaxy around him.

'Never!'

If that was what the Force and the Jedi demanded of him then he might as well have slapped a shcok collar on his neck and sold himself into slavery on Nal Hutta or on Zygerria.

Because that is what the Jedi were in the end. The galaxies ultimate slaves. Who actively aspired to have no will of their own and no goals beyond what the Force allowed?

Not him. He was the blood of Darth Vader and heir to the Dark Side. He refused to be nothing but a flesh and blood automaton.

But the fact that he still used these light side techniques was only further proof that he had not fully committed to his path yet. It highlighted the fact that the light side still maintained a hold on him. It was like a mynock that was latched on to him, leeching him of his conviction and his power.

If he had fully committed to the dark side he would have the mental focus and discipline that he knew he lacked. He would have been able to use and control his anger and rage, instead of lashing out like a child having a tantrum.

If he was as powerful as Darth Vader…then he would…

"Lord Ren?" A voice whispered in a tone so tentative. It bordered on petrified.

He turned and saw a stormtrooper officer standing in the entrance to the ruined interrogation cell. His rifle was in his arms but held in a resting position. The trooper clearly did not want to be in his presence at that moment. Ren could sense his fear and desperation in the force like a beacon. Obviously he feared that he would soon be subjected to the same fate as the interrogation equipment.

Not to long ago, he would have been right to be worried. But Ren remembered the discussions he had about this with Kuvira. She did not appreciate him injuring or even killing her soldiers in his blood rage. He had come to understand that such behaviour was counterproductive, and it was unworthy of him.

He knew that Vader had executed many Imperials, but only for a legitimate (if minor) offense. Never simply because he lost control. And as Vader's heir apparent, he would not display such idiocy. It was not the behaviour of a true Sith Lord.

On a more personal note, he knew that doing such things would anger Admiral Kuvira. And (as much as he refused to acknowledge this fact) he was unwilling to do something that would make her unhappy with him.

He faced the trooper. "The prisoner has escaped. I want her found immediately." He growled softly through his mask in a voice that promised dire retribution on anyone who failed in this task.

The trooper nodded and immediately ordered his soldiers (still hiding out of sight) to raise the alarm and begin sweeping the area. Once that was done the commander turned back to Kylo Ren. "Sir, I have been instructed to inform you that the planet is under attack by Resistance forces. Their fighters are attacking the planet oscillator in their attempt to disable the weapon." The commander reported before he was cut off by Ren.

"I am well aware of that commander, I was informed when the first attack wave occurred hours ago." Kylo said. There was no change to his tone as he said this. But the implied message was clear. 'This is beneath me, and you are wasting my time.'

The commander clearly heard that as well, since he did not mince his next words. "The Retribution has entered the system with Grand Admiral Kuvira aboard. She is leading the fighter squadrons in defence of the oscillator. But she issued standing orders for all senior officers and non-essential personnel to evacuate the planet to the Retribution immediately." He blurted out quickly.

Kylo Ren paused as the news that Kuvira was back in the system took an emotional effect on him that he refused to display to his soldiers. Once he had digested that news he asked his next questions. "The Admiral believes that the Resistance could succeed in their attack?" The question more of a statement than anything else.

The commander was not so unprofessional as to shrug, but he was clearly fighting the urge. "I do not know my lord. I only relayed the standing orders." The commander stated.

Ren nodded until a thought struck him. "Has General Hux been evacuated already?" He asked, knowing Hux would run off like a coward at the first hint of danger to his life.

The commander nodded almost instantly. "Yes, my lord. The General was evacuated on the first shuttle off planet. The Admiral placed clear orders that the General was to be escorted safely to the Retribution without delay. She has also placed her own personal guards to ensure his safety once he is aboard."

"I am sure she did." Kylo Ren responded. His voice was carefully neutral. But beneath his mask a savage smirk was stretching across his face. He knew the exact reasons why Kuvira had been so concerned for Hux's safety. Just like he knew that whether the Resistance succeeded or not. Armitage Hux was not going to survive this day. He could only hope that he could be there in person to watch whatever Kuvira had in store for him.

He was brought out of his vicious fantasies by the sound of the commander talking to him again. "My lord, we have a ship ready to take you off planet if you…." Kylo silenced him with a raised hand.

"The prisoner from Takodana is still missing. She contains information that is vital to the First Order. We will not leave this planet until she is in our custody or this planet breaks apart. Do you understand commander?" Ren ordered clearly.

The commander's gulp was almost audible in the corridor. But instead he simply saluted and ordered his remaining troopers to fall in to line so that they were ready to join Ren on his search for the missing prisoner.

Kylo Ren stepped out of the cell and took his place at the head of the stormtrooper squad. As he did he reached out with the Force again, to try and pinpoint the Jakku girl's location. He felt the currents of the Force shift as he enforced his will on them and commanded them to branch out across the entire world.

He felt the determination mixed with fear in the stormtroopers right behind him.

He felt the battle raging in the skies above the planet surface. The grim determination and focus of the pilots on both sides as they attacked and dodged, and counter attacked in their desperate deadly dance in the atmosphere. He felt the force react every time a pilot was killed as their fighter exploded around them.

A Jedi would say that the Force felt dimmer as the light of that person's life went out. But as he reached out with the dark side he felt the emotions that the moment create ripple through the force. The pain, fear and hatred of the dying and the satisfaction and glee of the killer pulsed in the Force and nourished the dark side within him.

He felt the unmistakable presence of Kuvira in the space battle. He icy control during the situation providing a perfect counter balance to his fiery passions as they intertwined during his metaphysical search. He felt her sudden elation as she brought down another enemy. Before it receded into her usual stoicism. He had enjoyed that moment of happiness he had felt within her.

As his presence washed over hears he felt her mind reach out to briefly touch his in recognition. It was not a conscious action on her part. It was an instinctual action from one not sensitive to the Force. He allowed himself to briefly allow the connection to deepen as he allowed himself to take strength and solace from her presence while he provided her with enhanced awareness and determination from him.

But he knew to deepen the connection any longer would cause a reaction in her conscious mind that could cost her life in battle. With that in mind, he regretfully pulled away and stretched his feelings out to the rest of the world.

He sensed the thousands of beings still within Starkiller base, and hundreds more evacuating in shuttles. He sent his senses deep within the planetary compound until he found her.

Her presence jumped out at him suddenly. Her mind shining like a beacon to him as a result of the mental connection they had already shared during her interrogation.

She was at the oscillator and her intentions there were so clear in his mind, she might as well have been broadcasting them. She was planning to damage and/or destroy the structure and do what the Resistance attack force could not.

But even as he began to turn to order his impromptu battalion to follow him to the transports to the oscillator compound. He was hit by another series of presences. Two of them were presences that he could not identify personally. Bit the structure and feeling of one person's mind was not unlike what he sensed in his stormtroopers. A similar presence but not identical anyway.

The other presence was with them and this one was familiar and most noticeably possessed a distinctly non-human mind. Even as he grasped that fact, the presence had a familiar sense to it. As if it belonged to a being that he had used to know long ago.

Finally, there was the third presence. This presence was most interesting because of how much he recognised that persons aura. It blazed in his minds eye like a solar flare or the blazing red glow of his lightsaber. It was a presence he hadn't felt since…." He eyes opened wide with shock as he realised without any doubt who that familiar presence was.

"Han Solo." He whispered quietly through his masks speaking apparatus.

"My lord?" The commander asked at his soft-spoken realisation.

Kylo Ren pushed his roiling emotions aside and turned around to face him. "Follow me." He ordered as they moved towards the underground transports that would take them to the oscillator compound.

 **Hux – POV**

"Get out of my way!" Hux barked as he exited the shuttle that had taken him and the rest of the senior commanders from Starkiller base to the Retribution that currently hung in the space of the star system.

He did not even acknowledge that he knocked down Captain Solas from the exiting ramp as he shoved past him and sent the Imperial veteran to the floor of the hanger. Hux considered such things beneath his notice. Otherwise he would have noticed the glares of barely concealed loathing that the entire Starkiller garrison command was sending at the back of his head.

But Hux was already striding to the bridge of the star destroyer as fast as he could walk while still appearing dignified.

When he arrived at the bridge he was not surprised to find Commander Hask standing on the command walkway directing the running of the ship. The Retribution was after all his personal star destroyer.

But he was not in the mood to talk to Hask at the moment. Especially since he had been forced to leave Starkiller the base right before the weapon fired and cemented his place in history as the destroyer of both the New Republic and the Resistance.

Nor was he in a favourable mood towards Hask at that moment. He had given the decrepit Imperial relic one simple task. To get Admiral Kuvira away from Starkiller so that he could oversee the destruction of their enemies personally. He had ensured he understood that if he failed him in this mission, then he would ensure that his career took a sharp and steep decline.

But it seemed that Hask had failed or decided to ignore his orders. Whichever one it was it did not matter; the end result was the same. And he would make sure that Hask would end up eating a blaster bolt.

He was already debating if it would be more entertaining to order it himself or make Hask's life so intolerable that he did it of his own volition.

He dismissed such thoughts. He could devote more time to them when he was not currently in a combat situation.

He was however pleased to see that Hask had clearly suffered for his incompetence on Vardos. He was leaning heavily on one of his legs and his face showed clear signs that he had been attacked and/or bludgeoned by someone.

'To whoever did that, I say well done'. Hux mentally chuckled. It would have been better if they could have permanently ended him, but he would get more enjoyment doing that himself.

Hask turned to regard him as he made his way up the walkway. When he saw who was striding towards him he displayed a small but noticeable look of annoyance and contempt. The reaction was subtle, but it was there and Hask's new facial injuries were preventing him from masking his feelings as well as he usually would.

Hux did not comment on Hask's momentarily obvious lack of respect or deference, he had no time for that. He simply filed the insult away in his mind. Mentally adding it to the long list of insults for which all his enemies would one day be made to pay.

"General." Hask uttered in greeting. The simple word was spoken without any noticeable emotion and in a tone that would not be out of place coming from a droid. Clearly he was trying to keep any signs of distaste from his voice.

"Where is Admiral Kuvira?" Hux demanded without even bothering to return the commander's greeting. "I must protest my removal from the planet while the Resistance is attacking our oscillator facility! I should be down their providing leadership to our forces and wiping out their pathetic strike force!" He snapped.

Hask did not dignify his rant by responding to it right away. After a few seconds of watching Hux's face grow more purple, he responded. "The Grand Admiral". He said with slight but clear emphasis on the word grand. "Is currently leading our fighter squadrons against the Resistance on the planet."

"She is making short work of the Resistance. They have fled into the upper atmosphere to escape the killing zone and have been forced to break off their attacks on the oscillator. Our sensor readings indicate that the battle will be over within the hour." Hask reported, taking special satisfaction in pointing out that it was Kuvira who was leading them to victory instead of Hux.

Hux's expression twisted as he fought to keep his burning rage and resentment under control. After all, orders and the chain of command were the hallmarks of the First Order. Even a General would not long survive if he was heard questioning or maligning his superior officer.

After a moment, he seemed ready to speak without shouting. "If that is the case, then there is no reason for me or the rest of the garrison command to be on this ship. May I ask what the Grand Admiral was thinking when she removed us from the planet and placed the oscillator and the weapon in danger?" He hissed

Hux was confident he already knew the real reason. He knew that Kuvira was not an idiot and would by now have realised the situation he had placed her in by arranging her trip to Vardos. He was just disappointed that the realisation had not resulted in her death or the death of Hask.

Now that she was back in command. He felt that she was doing to him, what he had done to her. She was removing him from the battle and relegating him to the side-lines so that she could claim the final glory and ensure that she gained the credit for destroying the Resistance.

If he paid more attention he would know that Kuvira had never once placed pride or revenge over the needs of the First Order. He never suspected that the real reason that he had been called on the Retribution was to ensure he could not escape her when she came back.

She had also considered it poetically symbolic given what the star destroyer was called.

Hask knew all this too. But he was certainly not going to give Hux any warning. "The Admiral stated that she is determined to not repeat the mistake made by Grand Moff Tarkin. While the Resistance's cause appears hopeless, there remains a danger if the oscillator is damaged while the weapon is charged. The chain reaction will likely destroy the entire planet and anything in the near vicinity. The Grand Admiral did not want to place the entire garrison command at unnecessary risk." Hask replied patiently. But his tone starting to take on the patronising tone one would use when lecturing a petulant child.

Clearly Hux noticed the change. "Are you mocking me, commander?!" He snapped as he stepped into Hask's personal space and bored his eyes into Hask's.

The action was clearly meant to be intimidating. But on Hask it just appeared foolish and overly exaggerated. In another time Hask might have been more cautious of how he dealt with Hux. After all he was still a General and could make his life very difficult or very short. That was after all, the whole reason he had grudgingly gone along with Hux's infantile plan to remove Kuvira to Vados.

But that was before the attack on Starkiller. He had looked into Kuvira's eyes when she had spoken about Hux and his transport to the Retribution. He had seen Hux's future in those emerald irises and it was no future at all.

Now he felt much more comfortable to address Hux with the respect he felt he deserved. But he would still honour the chain of command. For however long it applied.

"No General. I am simply relaying the instructions that were left by the Grand Admiral and what she entrusted us to do until the battle has been won and the Resistance forces destroyed." Hask explained.

Hux snarled and turned away from Hask as he stared out of the star destroyer's bridge viewport at the planet that was still visible in the distance of space. He continued to simply glare at the planet as if he could set it and everyone upon it ablaze with the intensity of his anger and frustration.

Then he turned back to Hask with a fire that bordered on maniacal in his eyes. "The Resistance is throwing their strength at Starkiller. But we know their base is located in the Ileenium system. While the Grand Admiral destroys their fighter force we must take the time to attack them in their lair. The more time we waste, the more time we give them to sling away into hiding." Hux declared as his voice began to rise in excitement. Maybe he could salvage this situation and still emerge with the glory he deserved.

"I want the 1st fleet to be called back to rendezvous in the system immediately. From there we will descend on the Ileenium system in force before the Resistance can escape. Between the battle here and our attack on their base. The Resistance will be wiped out in a single glorious day!" He ordered as he address Hask as if expecting him to instantly begin relaying the orders.

If that was the case then he was soon disappointed.

"General the 1st fleet has been ordered to remain on standby until the matter on Starkiller has been resolved. The ships are also under the direct command of the Grand Admiral and will not leave their current position without her express consent. Even if she was willing to provide that she cannot be contacted in the middle of a star ship battle." Hask reminded Hux even as he watched movement occur at the entrance to the bridge as more people entered the command centre, watching the interaction.

Hux gritted his teeth in frustration so hard, his teeth might have shattered into diamonds. After a few seconds of silence, he spoke again. However, this time his tone carried much less enthusiastic excitement. Now it carried the unmistakable edge of a threat.

"The send the orders to the 10th fleet. Those ships are under my direct command. Tell them they are too assemble their full force in the Ileenium system as soon as possible. I will take command of my flagship, _the Wrath_ in the system when we attack the Resistance base." Hux growled out in a dangerously quiet voice. He eyed Hask as if daring him to challenge him again.

If he was surprised when Hask did exactly that he did not show it.

"General, the 10th fleet was ordered to remain and protect our own territory by the Supreme Leader himself. The New Republic is crumbling, and the Resistance is dying as we speak. But we cannot leave our own planets and bases undefended. Those worlds under our rule in the outer rim pledged themselves to the First Order in exchange for our protection from the Hutts, pirates and slavers. If they see all their ships and defences disappear in times of war they may feel betrayed and incite rebellions. We cannot afford to fight a war of conquest across the galaxy while dealing with insurrections in our own homeland." Hask said in as professional a tone as he could given the damage to his face.

"Even if that was not the case. While we know the Resistance, base is in the Ileenium system. We do not have an exact location. The fleet would take days to scan all the planets and regions of the system and by that time the Resistance could have fled. The Grand Admiral states that we must wait until we have pinpointed their location and then destroy them in a lightning strike before they can slip away." Hask reported calmly to mollify Hux as best he could.

But it seemed that Hux had reached the end of his infamously short temper. With a lightning strike, he backhanded Hask across the face with all his might. Normally the blow would not have caused a reaction from Hask. But with his facial injuries he cried out in pain and anger as Hux's blow caused his wounds to flare up. As he staggered to the side and put his hand to his face, he tasted the familiar metallic taste of blood leaking into his mouth.

"I have had enough of your defiance and insubordination, Commander!" Hux spat the lower rank as if it was a curse. "You will carry out my orders this instant. And you will remember who is in command here!" He shouted to Hask and to the entire bridge crew as his voice echoed away.

Hask slowly took his hand away from his mouth as he observed the blood falling from his lips on to his black glove. Then he straightened up slowly and turned to face Hux.

But this time.

There was no hint of subservience or obedience in his expression.

"No, General." Hask hissed. Saying Hux's rank as if it was a terribly unfunny joke. Hux was shocked at the open defiance in Hask's face and he took an involuntary step back as Hask continued.

"I think you have forgotten, exactly who is in command here." Hask said, and his voice made in unmistakable to anyone just who he was referring too. "Grand Admiral Kuvira. And she had ordered that the fleets remain where they are. And there, they shall stay!" He barked.

Hux was spluttering what might have been outraged refusals or condemnations. Or even calls to have Hask seized and executed. But his words were lost in his shock as he could not form words from his baffled mind or tangled tongue. But Hask was not finished as he delivered his next words.

"She has also ordered that you will remain on the Retribution until she returns from the battle. She has made it known that she wishes to discuss some matters of great importance with you." Hask said with now a noticeable amount of glee in his tone.

Hux suddenly became aware of just how alone he felt in this moment as he noticed that not one person had opposed Hask in his clearly treasonous words. He also noted how Hask had spoken words that would normally carry the death penalty under First Order law in front of everyone.

And yet not a single person in the bridge crew looked in away way surprised.

He felt a very real and very strong feeling. It was an instinctual feeling that harked back millennia to his primitive ancestors. But that feeling told him that danger was close and to run as far and fast as he could if he hoped to survive.

Clearing his throat and swallowing his nerves he turned his increasingly pale face back to Hask. When he spoke, he tried to project his old arrogant confidence and keep his voice from cracking.

"I will summon the 10th fleet and destroy the Resistance myself. And when I return Hask I will have you arrested for insubordination and treason. And I will personally make sure that you are sentenced to certain, instant and even immediate death!" He blustered in Hask's unimpressed face.

With that he spun round and began to walk down the command walkway to exit the bridge and get out this ship as fast as possible.

But he was halted in his tracks as he felt himself slam into a solid surface.

As he opened his eyes after the impact he found himself staring into a sea of red armour plate. Slowly, he tilted his head upwards until he was staring into the faceless helmets of two praetorian guards. The guards were standing shoulder to shoulder so as to completely block the walkway to Hux.

Behind him, Hux heard Hask step forward and continue speaking. "As I said General. You have been instructed to remain on board the Retribution." Hask relayed. After he finished the two guards acted.

In a move so professional and so fast, Hux could not follow it. They spun their vibro-voulges and activated them.

The next thing Hux knew both voulges were crossed in scissor formation across his exposed neck. The red energy blade of the blades was less then an inch from his pale and sweating neck flesh.

Hask continued to speak and he was no longer making any attempt to keep his tone pleasant. Now the glee and satisfaction in his voice bordered on the sadistic. "The Grand Admiral will be returning once the battle has been decided and she intends to speak with you soon. You will remain here to await her, pleasure." Hask said taking the time to add cruel emphasis on the final word.

If Hux had not been too afraid of slicing his neck open on the vibro-voulges.

He would have gulped.

 **Kylo Ren - POV**

"Ben!"

The name echoes as Kylo Ren stops, far across the vast catwalk of the oscillator chamber. He turned and sure enough. There at the opposite end of the walkway stood the greyed and haggard smuggler, Han Solo.

"Han Solo. I've been waiting for this day for a long time" He said as he turned around fully and took a few steps towards the old man before he came to a stop again. He remained as calm as he could in both posture and in his voice.

But inside his emotions were roiling. This was his moment. This was his initiation into the darkness. The time when he would finally be able to exercise all his failures and weaknesses from himself and emerge stronger for it.

Vader had faced the same test on the first Death Star. When he had confronted his old master, Obi-Wan Kenobi again after all those years. He had fought and killed him. Finally avenging himself for his defeat on Mustafar and finally completing a rite of passage almost as old as the Sith Order.

But could he do it?

He knew what his master would expect of him in this moment. He knew what he had to do. But now that he was staring at his father again after all these years. He was not sure he could do what was necessary.

He had been so lost in his personally musings that he had not noticed that Han Solo had stepped across the walkway and was now noticeably closer than he had been. Although he noticed that Han was gripping the railings of the walkway tightly as he stumbled and struggled for balance.

It was then that he noticed Solo's knees were heavily bandaged and had what appeared to be kolto injectors pumping the healing medicine into his wounds. He remembered Kuvira telling him that she had shot Solo in the legs on Takodana to prevent his escape. While it had not worked it clearly had left an impression on him up till this point.

"Take off that mask. You don't need it." Han said with the voice of a father who had caught his child using his shaving kit to early.

Kylo recognised that tone and did not appreciate it. "What do you think you'll see if I do?" He asked stubbornly as Han continued to move towards him.

"The face of my son." Han declares with absolute certainty.

Kylo Ren feels his rage almost erupt right then and there. His son?! To have a son you had to be a father. And Han Solo had not been a father in so long it was almost hard to remember if he ever had been.

A father is meant to be there for you. A father is meant to raise you. A father is meant to protect you! What had Han Solo done to fulfil any of those requirements?

He had abandoned him and his mother on Hosnian Prime the first chance he got. For all his claims of how much he loved them and how he valued nothing above them. Clearly he had loved the life of a smuggler, racer and general rogue more. If he had truly cared for them he would have stayed and been with his family more than just three or four times a year.

And typically, those loving family visits had always just happened to coincide with his latest loss on the swoop bikes and him conveniently remembering to pick up some cash while he was home. Before he headed out to catch the next Malastare pod races or get some illegal cargo to a gangster friend of his.

His mother had been no better. For all her promises of how much she loved him and his father. He had quickly realised that he would always come second place against her beloved Republic. That when he was measured against Leia Organa's oh so noble causes, he would always come up short in terms of priorities.

His mother had always been far to concerned with taking care of the rest of the galaxy that she had never made time for her own family. Maybe that was why she didn't care so much about Han's absences. Maybe they even worked out for her better. That way, she could devote more time to the next struggle for freedom without needing to bother with the trivial matter of her husband and son.

And yet they had wondered why his anger and resentment had began to boil over in his early teens. How his power in the force had began to manifest in small displays of power driven by his simmering anger.

He had heard them talk about it behind closed doors when they thought he was asleep or just oblivious. How they had talked about him like he was a monster instead of their son.

They could have taken the time to talk to him. To find out what the root cause of his problem was. To learn why he was forced to keep this aggression and hurt hidden until it exploded in bursts of darkness.

If they had done that they might have seen that the common denominator in this was them. Then maybe things could have been different.

Instead they had done what they had always done best. They had put as much distance as they could between themselves and him. They had shipped him off to his uncle Luke's training school.

They claimed it was for his own good and to help him control his power and serve the galaxy as a great Jedi Master. Maybe even one day as Grandmaster.

But he had seen it for the abandonment that it was. They had sent him off and then washed their hands of him. His father went back to his lowlife friends that he was always much more comfortable with. While his mother went back to her true love in politics and dissidents.

They had sent holo calls once every few months. But beyond that, he might as well have been an old droid that they had sold since they didn't want him anymore.

He honestly doubted they would have even learned about his defection to the First Order if Luke had not told them.

And now Han Solo had the utter gall to refer to him as his son?!

Kylo Ren felt his anger burn before he managed to restrain himself a bit. He decided that he would humour the old man. If nothing else it would hammer home the point that Han Solo had not since his face since before he became a man.

Kylo reached up and disengaged his mask which he then pulled off his head. He took the time to enjoy the jolted look of surprise on Solo's face.

"Your son is gone. He was weak and foolish, like his father. So, I destroyed him." Kylo said. His voice sounding off as it had been a long time since he had spoken without his mask.

Han shook is head in denial at his words. "That's what Snoke wants you to believe but it's not true. My son is alive." He said in a voice that was not pleading. But it was not too far off either.

Kylo's rage flared instantly. Both at Solo's continued insistence at calling him his son. But also, for his insult against the Supreme Leader. A man who had been more of a role model. More of a mentor. More of a father then Han Solo could ever claim to have been.

"No. The Supreme Leader is wise." He snapped in anger.

Han continued to step towards him until he was standing right in front of Kylo Ren. "Snoke is using you for your power. When he gets what he wants, he'll crush you." He paused as he let his words sink in.

"You know it's true." He said as a statement rather than a question.

Kylo hesitates. Somehow, he does know it. It was after all, what his master had always taught him. Once something or someone is no longer useful. It must therefore be discarded lest it drag you down with it.

It was the way of the Sith, the way of the dark side. Master and apprentice were loyal to each other until the moment that they were not. An apprentice had no use for a master who had nothing left to teach them. And a master had no use for an apprentice that could not grow stronger.

He shook his head in resignation as he felt his mind start to run in circles with contemplating these questions. "It's too late." He whispers is voice almost cracking with emotion.

Han steps forward again until they are almost nose to nose. "No, it's not. Leave here with me. Come home. We miss you." He said as he looks into his sons' eyes. It seemed that he was searching desperately for something to give him hope that his words were reaching Ben Solo somewhere deep within Kylo Ren.

For the first time, Kylo Ren seems truly conflicted. Tears flood his normally stoic eyes.

He considers what Han Solo. What his father has said.

For a moment he does just want to put all of this behind him. To leave all the death and killing behind him. To leave and find a place where people would love and like him instead of simply fearing him. To be the person that crowds would cheer for instead of kneeling in submission.

All these thoughts flash across his mind before they are swept away. Then he asks the questions that he needs to say. To ask the questions that should have been asked years ago.

"Come home to what?" He asks to Han's puzzled face. "Come home to a family in name only. To a mother who spent more time with politians then she ever did with me?" He said as his voice started to rise.

"To a father who would rather be spending his days with gangsters, spice dealers and crime lords then with his own family? To an uncle who taught me about how a Jedi never uses the force to attack, and then tried to murder me in my sleep?" He demands as Han starts to look a little less sure of himself and his words.

Han still persevered, however. "Come home to a family that want you back because they miss you and not because you can do things for them." He said is voice becoming firmer.

But it was the wrong thing to say as Kylo returned the argument at hyper speed. "No? So, if I do come with you I won't be made to tell the Resistance everything I know about the First Order from a holding cell. I won't be forced to undergo 'redemption' at the hands of that hypocrite!" Kylo said his voice becoming more defiant as Han saw the long simmering anger coming to the surface.

"And once they have all they want from me. Will I be executed or forced to join mom's sorry little resistance band?" He said in a tone that was bordering on a sneer.

Han tried to remain calm in the face of his sons anger but he could not let that comment about the Resistance slide. "Do not talk about them that way! They are good people in the Resistance. People who have been willing to lay down their lives for the sake of others. People who are dying right now in the skies above this planet." He demanded firmly. His tone automatically taking on the scolding sound he had used when Ben had been a small boy.

But it had clearly lost the effect it once had. "Please." Kylo Ren scoffed at his fathers' words. "They are anarchists and terrorists. They are radicals that even the New Republic disavowed. They are the ones who started this war by attacking us remember?" He declared as he saw his father getting increasingly frustrated.

"They attacked us because they had too. They cannot survive without a war. They have no purpose without a cause to fight for. And as long as they get their 'heroic rebellion' they will happily burn the galaxy to ash and damn us all to bloody chaos!" He proclaimed.

Han struck back, his face growing red. "At least they don't blow up entire planets and kill billions in what they don't even bother to call a war crime!" He yelled before he tried to calm himself before speaking softly again. "Come on Ben you cannot support all this. This isn't you. The son I knew would never…" He said before Kylo cut him off.

"You never knew me!" He shouted. "You weren't even there to know me! So, don't presume to tell me what I would or would not do!"

Han shook his head slowly at what he was hearing. "You have been brain washed. By Snoke and that Kuvira schutta. You…." He stopped talking as Kylo Ren's face exploded in fury. If Han was force sensitive he would have felt the burning heat of the dark side erupt from his son in that moment.

"DO NOT CALL HER THAT!" Kylo Ren screamed as he aggressively stepped forward. Before he knew what was happening his lightsaber flew into his hand and activated. The red blade and cross guards blazing into life.

Han tried to take several frantic steps backwards as his enraged son's weapon came perilously close to his face.

But his injured legs failed to support him in his frantic retreat and soon they gave way and he went crashing to the walkway floor.

Kylo stopped as he held his lightsaber and gazed at his father as he lay on the walkway floor. He wondered how so much had just suddenly happened, so quickly. He had not even consciously acknowledged how deep his 'passions' for the Grand Admiral went. But at his father's insult against her. It has caused the dam of repression to burst and for him to be able to realise many things he had been trying to deny.

As he regained focus he made to shut down the lightsaber. But the next thing he knew the force screamed a warning as he swung his lightsaber around. He just got the blade in position to send the green energy bolt (that would have smashed into his torso) into the depths of the oscillator.

As he staggered back from the heavy force of the crossbow blaster. He looked up on the railings and saw that flea-bitten beast Chewbacca standing with his bow caster aimed squarely at Kylo Ren's face.

As he watched, Chewbacca roared at Han to move as he fired again and again at the dark warrior. Kylo's lightsaber was a blur of red as he batted the bolts away and sent several back at Chewbacca, forcing the Wookie to duck for cover.

It was funny he thought. When he had been a child. Chewbacca had often carried him on his shoulders. Or swung him around with his great arms as he laughed with joy. Now they were both trying to kill each other.

As he smacked bolts away he saw Han limping away down the walkway and he yelled after him.

"So, was this the plan, father?" He called out. Saying the word father like it made a bad taste in his mouth. "Try to lure me to your side with soft false words. All the while preparing to kill me if I refused?!

Han turned back as he struggled to stay up right. "No Ben, it wasn't like that. I swear!" He shouted back desperately. "Chewie just thought you were going to…" He got no further.

"Shut Up!" Kylo yelled. "For once, just shut your lying, swindling mouth! I am so sick of your lies and false promises!" Kylo roared out as he sent more bolts back at Chewbacca.

The memories and feelings that had surfaced from Ben Solo moments ago where gone. They were being burned away by this latest and most terrible betrayal. Slowly but certainly. The boy that was Ben Solo was being consumed in the fires of rage that were erupting in this moment.

Soon, only Kylo Ren would remain.

"Ben. Stop and listen to me!" Han shouted until he suddenly found himself unable to move. He tried to force his body to react. But it was like he was frozen in carbonite once again. As he looked he saw Ben stare at him with murderous intent, his hand outstretched towards him.

"No more words, father!" Kylo Ren said. "The days of Han Solo cheating and disappointing people end here!"

With that. Kylo Ren leapt forward and into the air as he dodged the next bolts from Chewbacca.

Han was still frozen and completely helpless as he watched his son descend on him from the sky with his lightsaber held over his head. His eyes blazing and teeth bared.

And both Han and Chewie knew that nothing would stop him from bringing his lightsaber cleaving through his father's skull.


	19. Chapter 19 - The Crucible

**Lady Syndra: Glad to hear I was able to get you to view Han Solo in a different light. I was sceptical at first of Han's failure as both a husband and a father. But then I realised that was just the nostalgia that wanted a 'happily ever after' ending for the rebel heroes. In reality, a largely amoral smuggler and criminal like Han would have problems settling down to raise a family and would likely spend months or years away from home to live a carefree life. That is what I love about the new trilogy. It is less comic book events and more realism.**

 **TishaLiz: Thanks as always for your review. I always love to hear that people enjoy what I have wrote and that they like how the story is going. I hope you enjoy this chapter a well.**

 **Guest: Thanks for the review. I have had lots of people asking me not to kill Han or too kill him. But I hope you enjoy this chapter.**

 **wildcat717: As much as I hate cliffhangers when I encounter them I find that they do lend suspense. I hope you enjoy this chapter as well.**

 **Rhyming With Oranges: Haha, thank you very much for all your kind words in your review. I wish I had the space to respond in depth to all of your comments. But I am glad that you liked the dynamic between Han and Kylo. I liked the movie, but I felt they missed an opportunity to explain Kylo's motivations in that scene. I know they went into it in the books but still. I have a grand idea of what Kuvira is going to do to Hux and I hope you enjoy it. And I am glad that you enjoyed the scene between Kylo and Kuvira through the force. It has been hard to develop their relationship while keeping true to them as people. But I felt that scene was a good place to break through to a new level.**

 **Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter as well.**

 **Gilyflower: Glad to have you back. It is always great to hear from everyone about how they feel the story is going. I am glad that you enjoyed the battlefront addition. I wanted to take a break from just the movie and see how Kuvira would react in that situation. I also killed Iden out of revenge for the utter lies that we were promised for her character. She was sold as an Imperial loyalist and later First Order protagonist only to defect to the rebels in two hours. So, I took her down and good riddance.**

 **Artemis Persephone Jackson: I considered that but remember that Kuvira is still fighting in the fighter battle as this is happening. Even if she wasn't I don't think she would do it. Kuvira is always open to the 'Better alive then dead' policy towards prisoners. But she also follows the 'not worth the risk' policy as shown with Iden and Zay. At this point Han's continued interference is too much trouble for too little gain to be allowed to continue.**

 **Setress: Thank you as always for the review. Yes, Kylo is now ready to kill his father at what he perceives as an attempted ambush. As for Rey and Finn, well you will see.**

 **Loyal Imperial: Thanks for the review and I am glad that you liked the dynamic between Han and Kylo.**

 **Kksambo: I really enjoyed reading your review. I would love to discuss all of the points you made in more detail but as it is I will just say. I don't have much of a problem with Rey. But I really to take issue with how she just becomes a mary-sue who is willing to do anything to save the Resistance (an unknown group), the Jedi (another one) and everyone else. These are not the actions of a person who has lived on Jakku alone fighting to survive on a daily basis. She should be more like Jack from Mass Effect or Kaliyo from Swtor. But instead her attitude makes no sense to her upbringing! Luke at least was raised by a loving family and had rebel sympathetic friends.**

 **Anyway, that is my own rant over. On with the next chapter. I hope you enjoy it.**

* * *

 **Chapter 19 – The Crucible**

 **Starkiller Base**

 **Kylo Ren – POV**

Kylo looked into his fathers' eyes (so much like his own) as he descended on him with his lightsaber crackling and spitting above his head in an attack that would sever Han Solo in half from his brain to his balls!

In those eyes saw many emotions flash across them in the split second it took for him to reach the zenith of his jump and begin to come crashing down on his intended victim. He saw the fear of his impending death with the knowledge that there was nothing he could do to stop it.

He saw the sadness that his plan to bring him back to the Resistance and to his pathetic excuse for a family had gone up in flames. And he saw the determination to die with some semblance of dignity.

But Kylo Ren was not interested in what Han Solo was or was not feeling in this moment. He had stopped caring about his father's feeling in the moment when his great shaggy pet Wookie tried to assassinate him while his father tried to trick him with soft empty words. He supposed that was only fair. Han Solo had not cared about his feelings in years. Or possibly ever.

Kylo was almost on Han as he began to bring his lightsaber down for the coup-de-grace, when the force screamed out a warning of imminent danger.

Using the Force to alter his path in mid-air, he thrust out with his power, causing him to reverse course and complete a backwards flip that brought him back to the walkway in a crouched position. Even as he had spun out of danger his lightsaber flicked out, guided by the force. He felt the impacts of the blaster bolts that would have fired into his chest ricochet away from his red blade.

His vision was a blur of crimson fire as his lightsaber flashed in every direction as the barrage of blaster fire coming his way suddenly intensified three-fold.

Through the haze of red and the lightning reactions needed to keep himself alive he could not divert his attention to see who was firing at him along with Chewbacca. With that being the case, he reached out with the force and allowed his hatred and his battle passion fuel his power. He expanded his senses and he intended to find out just who was going to follow the Wookie into a well-deserved grave!

As he stretched out with his feeling he was aware of his cowardly lying excuse for a father making his way towards the stairs back up to the platform that Chewbacca was standing on. His injured legs were not making the ascent easy. But he noticeably picked up speed when he was forced to duck as Kylo managed to send two deflected blaster bolts at his head.

He had no time to aim with the rabid fire he was dealing with. And as a result, his shots were only deflected on instinct. They missed their target and instead slammed into the platform structures as Han scrambled up the stairs to safety.

But then he found the two new comers that were currently firing their blaster rifles at him as fast as they could.

One of them he recognised after a few moments. It was the traitor. The Stormtrooper that had been on Jakku in Tekka's village that day. The one that he had sensed great turmoil within in the aftermath of the battle. The one that had later gone on to free that Resistance parasite, Poe Dameron.

FN-2187.

That repulsive deserter had been presumed missing. All their analysts had agreed that the maggot had most likely vanished into the remote outer rim or the depths of the galactic underworld. The only hope for those who did not want to be found. Especially from an organisation like the First Order, the took a very dim few on betrayal.

But it seemed he had taken his betrayal even further by joining the Resistance in the attack on Starkiller base.

And now he was trying to kill him!

Kylo snarled at the sheer gall of this man. He had originally intended to make his execution swift and clean as was standard in the First Order. Now he was going to make it slow and detailed!

But it was the presence next to him that really got his attention.

Rey! The scavenger had somehow managed to get out of her cell. But maybe he should have seen that as a possibility, given her immense natural talent in the Force. But now she was here as well. No doubt she was coming because she was desperate to save her newly found surrogate father in Han Solo.

Despite the situation he could not help but allow a sardonic smile to cross his face as he continued to defend against their combined onslaught.

He wished he could have seen her face when she realised that Han Solo was not going to be her new daddy. And even if he did agree to 'foster' her. She would realise very quickly how disappointingly inadequate he was to be a father or a father figure.

But she would never get the chance.

Because he was going to kill Han Solo, here, today. And when he was done wiping his father's blood of his boots. He would kill her too.

He would make sure to wrench the map from her feeble mind before he makes the killing blow of course. Earlier when he had tried he had been unable to push past the barriers in her mind that she threw up against his intrusion. He had been stunned at her deep connection to then Force. And that surprise had allowed her to finer her own way into his mind.

He had been so floored by her presence in his mind and her revelation about his thoughts on Darth Vader that he had fled the scene like a coward. He realised how with a derisive scowl at his own earlier weakness. He had actually run to his master begging him to solve his problem for him like a pathetic helpless child!

But now he knew he could get the map from her himself.

The Force was flowing through him like never before. He felt the Dark Side coursing through his body as if it had replaced the blood in his veins. He was not sure how or why. But since his anger and passions had exploded during his confrontation with his father, he felt more powerful then he had ever dreamed he could be!

His master had been right. By his attempts to kill his father. By his wanting, needing to kill the old bastard. He had finally freed himself of his remaining familial attachments. And in so doing. He had removed the blocks on his power by his holding on to his family and the light side. Now the blocks were gone, and the dark side was flowing through him unimpeded.

It was glorius!

He knew that this time she would have no chance of resisting him and now he would rip that map from her mind like a candy from a child.

And once he had the map and disposed of her and the rest of them. He would finally have what he needs to find Skywalker and fulfil his destiny.

But he had sat on the defensive long enough. Now he was going to find out just how powerful he had become.

He swung his lightsaber across his body as he simultaneously blocked three blaster bolts from the beast, the traitor and the desert rat and sent them flying away. Using the momentum of his swing he crouched and called the Force into his body to enhance his strength and speed.

With a speed that left his three enemies thinking he had simply vanished he darted forward under the relative cover of the platform girders, deactivating his lightsaber as he did so to vanish into the shadows. From there he leapt on the beams one after the other until he landed on the on directly underneath the walkway that Chewbacca and now his father were standing on.

His movement was a silent as a mynock in the dark and neither one of the fools even noticed his whereabouts beneath them. He grinned as he took his lightsaber in his hand and aimed the deactivated handle right at the spot beneath Chewbacca's feet.

He would activate the blade, which would sheer through the metal and spear the filthy animal wear he stood. From there it would be a simple matter to leap on to the walkway and finish him off (if he was still alive from the first attack).

Han Solo would not escape him. Not with his injured legs and not against Kylo Ren's new powers. He would finish him off and then proceed to hunt down the last two infiltrators at his leisure.

He turned his lightsaber hilt over as he aimed it at the still oblivious Wookie that was turning its head every which way searching for danger. He smirked as the dumb animal remained unaware that his death was below him, like a firaxan shark preparing to strike from the depths.

But just as he was about to activate the blade a voice called out from the far entry way. "Chewie, look out he is beneath you!" Rey screamed out as she gestured to the walkway Chewbacca was standing on.

Kylo Ren snarled as he realised what had happened. Somehow that filthy scavenger was able to tap into the Force at will now. She had sensed his presence, location and intent through the force, just as he had when he had sensed their presence in the room. He had been so confident of her lack of training that he had not bothered to hide himself in the Force.

He was momentarily thrown as he wondered how she had done that. When he had touched her mind, her power had been great but clearly untrained. She should not have had the knowledge to be able to sense where he was beyond a small tingle of danger at most.

He could only assume something had resulted in their mental connection that had allowed her to tap into the Force more deeply.

But he did not have time to consider all these possibilities. He activated his lightsaber and sent the crimson blade slicing through the metal directly at the Wookie.

But the Wookie (with the instincts natural to his people, and a lifetime of combat experience) threw himself out of the way. And just in time as the crackling blade burst from the walkway floor where he had been standing moments before. The Wookie rolled to his feet as Han came up and helped pull him up from his forearm.

Kylo seethed in silence as he slashed at the walkway with his lightsaber as he tried to cut enough of the metal away for him to weaken the structure enough. Within a few seconds he had done the needful and thrust out with his open palm.

The Force erupted from his hand and the invisible blast hit the damaged walkway panels and sent them flying from their fixings like shrapnel.

Then, like a dark spectre he lept through the glowing melted metal and landed in front of the Wookie and his father who stood about ten metres away from him. His lightsaber was in his hand and it remained activated as the red blade crackled as if it was too excited by the impending slaughter to remain still.

Rey and the traitor tried to fire at him to distract him. But they were not able to get a clear shot through all of the railing and the rest of the equipment between them.

Besides the Stormtroopers had finally come to their senses and were returning fire at the pair of them as they were forced to retreat away from the entry ledge.

Kylo looked into the eyes of his soon to be victims as they stared at each other. In his father's eyes he saw only sadness, anger and acceptance. He had failed to convince his son and was now accepting the truth that Ben Solo was gone. And Kylo Ren stood in his place.

But in the Wookie's eyes, there was only anger and defiance. He supposed that made sense. He had been close to Chewbacca when he was a young child. But that relationship had died quickly when the relationships with his parents began to crumble.

Now they viewed each other with nothing but contempt and hatred on both sides. The fact that both of them had proven perfectly willing to kill each other in this room today was proof of that.

But as strong as the Wookie was he was no match for him now. Soon he would be dead, and he would take his fur as a new coat. Maybe he would gift the pelt to Kuvira after the battle. He privately thought she would look stunning in fur.

His musings were interrupted as he noticed that Chewbacca was raising his hand. Kylo raised his lightsaber ready to deflect another blaster bolt if the stupid beast tried to fire at him.

But he noticed that the Wookie was not holding a blaster or his bow caster. Instead it looked like a simple detonation controller.

His eyes widened as he realised what it was just at the same moment that then Force shouted a warning in his mind. At the same moment Chewbacca's finger pressed down on the detonation button. With that he dropped the controller turned his back and sprinted down the walkway towards the entry way that his two companions were still perched on. He paused just long enough to grab Han and throw him over his shoulder as the smuggler tried to run on his bad legs.

Kylo Ren sensed the bombs placed across the oscillator chamber and cursed himself as a fool. He had been so determined to kill his enemies and too busy revealing in his new powers that he had failed to realise what they were actually doing in this place. What they were hoping to accomplish.

He also sensed one of the explosives was less than twenty metres from him right now.

With no time left, Kylo Ren pulled the force around his body to shield himself, just as the world around him became heat and light.

 **Kuvira - POV**

She pressed down on the firing trigger and watched as a stream of green energy flew from her TIE fighter and slammed into the x-wing that was desperately trying to avoid her. The x-wing erupted in a ball of fire, then flew apart as the Resistance ship broke apart.

She flew through the debris as she took the moment to take stock of the overall battle going on around her.

What she saw was encouraging. The Resistance attack force was done to its last dozen fighters, give or take. They had been chased away from the Oscillator and they could not breach its defensive armour even if they were able to attack it.

The star was completely gone and by her calculations the weapon would be ready to fire in a few moments. With it the destruction of the Resistance base would be assured, and it would only take a short time to destroy all of the remaining Resistance fighters left in the sky.

They had paid a heavy price for it. She had lost no less then twenty-nine fighters, either to the enemy or to friendly fire from the seeker missiles before they had escaped higher into the atmosphere. But this battle would end in an overwhelming victory for the First Order.

She usually tried to avoid claiming victory before the battle ended. But in this situation she allowed herself to feel confident in the outcome.

She as snapped out of her thoughts as she saw a distinctively recognisable black x-wing streak past her viewport as it destroyed another of her TIE fighters in the process. Poe Dameron!

She engaged her engines and shot after Dameron's x-wing as it wove its way through the mad melee of fighters and energy blasts firing in every direction. If she could bring down Dameron, then this battle would be that much closer to being won. And she was not willing allow any opportunities for Dameron or his allies to pull off a miracle.

Suddenly her intercom beeped with an urgent transmission. She would typically ignore it, but no one would be insane enough to contact her in the middle of a battle with something trivial. At least no one who wanted to remain alive would be stupid enough to do that.

She opened her com channel and simply allowed whoever it was to relay the message. She could not distract herself any more then necessary in this combat situation. "Grand Admiral, this is Starkiller planetary command. Are you reading me?" The voice of the comms officer planeside called out in a voice that was noticeably frantic.

That got her attention. "I am here what is the situation?" She asked directly.

"Admiral, the Oscillator has taken damage. Reports have come in that a number of large explosions have detonated from within the central chamber." The officer reported in a slightly panicked voice.

Kuvira turned her head so sharply, it was as if there was a spring inside her neck. She quickly angled her fighter away from chasing Dameron and allowed her viewport to take in the surface of the planet and the oscillator chamber.

Even from in the high atmosphere she could see the flames glowing from the central structure. The fires and the explosions were clearly large and clearly damaging. The entire oscillator had ben turned into a huge beacon that could be seen even from space.

Kuvira's mind was momentarily lost as she tried to comprehend what had happened. The no way that the Resistance attack force could have broken through their fighter squadrons. They were out numbered and right now they were just fighting to remain alive. Even if they had managed to attack the oscillator. Their weapons could not have inflicted anywhere near that much damage on the armoured structure's surface.

There was the possibility of malfunction. But if the oscillator had malfunctioned at this crucial time then the damage would have likely taken the whole planet with them. As it was only a single side of the oscillator appeared to be damaged.

That left only one other possibility. Sabotage, infiltrators!

She gripped her fighter controls so hard she was sure that the knuckles had turned white under her gloves. Somehow, someway, the Resistance had managed to land soldiers on the planet, bypass all their defences, avoid all their patrols and troopers. And now they had managed to blow up a sizable portion of the planet oscillator!

Despite all her planning, despite all her logic, despite simple empirical evidence. Yet again the Resistance and their rebels had managed to pull of the impossible and she was left struggling to understand what was happening.

She could help but wonder if this was the feeling that Vader had after the battle of Yavin. Or Grand Admiral Thrawn had felt on Atollon. Or Grand Moff Pellion had felt after the battle of Endor.

Even as she was trying to wrap her mind around this sudden change in fortunes. She saw all the Resistance fighters disengage from the aerial combat and dive towards the surface. There were heading straight towards the burning oscillator like a swarm of moths to the flame. The were obviously going to send all their remaining fire power at the damaged section. And with the armour breached there was a good chance that the oscillator would fail.

And if that happened when the weapon was fully charged?!

She wanted to curse but she would not allow this to shake her composure. She quickly activated her comm channel. "All fighters, pursue and destroy. The Resistance is making a run at the oscillator. I want to you to use whatever means necessary to destroy them before they get the chance. Attack immediately!" She ordered.

Her fighters immediately formed up and flew after their enemies, filling the sky in-between the two groups with green energy blasts.

Kuvira held back as she reactivated her commlink with planetary command. "Officer, I want the weapon fired immediately. Discharge the weapon at the Resistance base now!" She barked in a tone that should have left no argument.

But the officer wasted valuable time questioning her orders. "Admiral the weapon is not fully charged, and the energy has not been properly converted into the quintessence phase yet. If we fire the weapon now it will likely dissipate in to nothing before it reaches the Ileenium system." The officer reported meekly.

Ordinarily Kuvira would have respected, maybe even commended his daring. But now was not the time to question her judgement. "If the weapon is fully charged when the oscillator is destroyed the entire planet will collapse into a firestorm. If we discharge the weapon before it is destroyed the damage will be greatly reduced and the planet might stand a change of surviving. Now relay my orders or I will have you court marshalled." She said. She did not yell but her calmly spoken words promised death if she received any further argument.

"Yes, Grand Admiral!" The suitably chastised officer said as she nodded.

"Good, once the weapon has been prepped to fire, order all remaining personnel to evacuate the planet. Even if we discharge the weapon, the damage will still be cataclysmic. We must evacuate the entire planet until its survival is clear." She added.

"Yes, Grand Admiral" The officer repeated and cut the connection to issue her commands.

Kuvira considered joining her flight squadron in pursuit of the Resistance fighters. But she decided against it. She had a feeling that the Resistance would succeed in destroying the oscillator. After this sudden reversal she had the sixth sense that this battle would end well for the Resistance.

Once again she wondered is earlier Imperial commanders had this sense when they saw the rebels snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.

But one thing she could do was to locate and personally dispose of the Resistance infiltrators that had caused this setback. Afterall they must know that they only had a short time to escape the planet and that meant they must had kept their ship near to the oscillator compound.

Whoever they were she was going to make certain that they did not get to enjoy their fruits of their victory.

With that she activated the engines and bolted her craft toward the oscillator. Just as the Starkiller weapon began to glow and a split second later. The horizon once again burst into crimson fire.

 **Han - POV**

From a distance the oscillator is ablaze and fractured from the explosives. Not far from the blazing inferno are a sprinting Rey and Finn, coming over a rise and running into the bare-tree snowy forest. Han and Chewie come running up behind them as the Wookie carries his human companion over his shoulder due to Han's weak legs.

The had all been standing stock still a moment ago as the horizon had suddenly burst into light as if the sun that had vanished earlier had been reborn on the planet surface.

For one truly dreadful moment. They had believed that they had been too late. That the oscillator had not been destroyed in time and that the Resistance base on D'qar was even now seconds away from being blown to cosmic vapor.

But then Finn had informed them that the weapon could not have been fully charged in the timeframe he was (fairly sure) that they had. He stated that the weapon had probably been fired to mitigate the damage done by the loss of the oscillator. And judging by the fact that the x-wings were still carrying out their attack, they seemed to think that too. Whether or not the weapon had the power to actually reach its target he could not say. But right now, their concern was getting off this rock before something else happened.

"The Falcon's this way." Finn yells out as they continued to run through the deepening snow and dodge between the treelines.

Chewie growled in agreement as they all continued in their mad dash to escape before anyone in the First Order could catch up to them. Even if that was not a great concern. They knew that if all went according to plan. The Resistance would destroy the oscillator entirely in a few moments. According to Resistance schematics. This would then cause the planet, (which they happened to be standing on) to collapse.

That is a great motivator to run faster then you have ever run in your life. Even in Han and Chewie's extensive lives as smuggler criminals.

But all that motivation did not matter when they all stopped dead at the familiar sound of a lightsaber igniting.

Kylo Ren moved through the trees until he stops in front of their path. A still figure amidst the gusts of wind and snow.

His black cloak and robes were singed from being engulfed in the explosion Chewbacca had set off in his face back in the oscillator. But aside from that he remained undamaged and ready to strike. His lightsaber blazed at his side throwing blood red light on the dark forest and snow around them.

But what was even more evident was how his eyes were blazing as well. And they were no longer their previous chocolate brown colour shared with his father. Now his eyes were blazing like molten gold and with the light from his lightsaber. They glowed in a way that looked appropriately demonic.

"We're not done yet." He states plainly and in a tone that drips of hatred.

Han had been set down by Chewie when they came to a stop and as he looked into the eyes of his son he could not help saying the worlds that forced their way into his mind. "I knew that this would happen. Leia believed that you would come back to us. She wanted to believe so badly, but I knew the truth. You have too much Vader in you. You always had darkness in you and nothing me or Leia or Luke could do to stop it." He said sadly but firmly.

Opposite him Kylo Ren's anger was deepening with every word and by extension his power grew.

"We tried to save you Ben, but we can't. Because you don't want to be saved." Han said sadly but firmly. "My son is dead. He died years ago. Kylo Ren is just the monster that stepped into the hollow shell that was left behind."

"I only wish now that Chewie had aimed at your head." He said as the anger he had felt towards his son for years now began to surface over the old grief and sadness.

Kylo Ren was silent for a moment. Then he began to speak. "Your right Han Solo. Your son did die years ago. But my father, died long before that. He existed so briefly that I can scarcely remember it. And Han Solo? He is not my father. He is just the man that would occasionally impersonate my father to gain access to a bed and the family accounts." Kylo spat at Han, his voice thick with contempt.

"Han Solo is nothing to me. He never was." He said, and despite himself Han could not stop his eyes from growing glassy at those words. "You should have stayed away from me while you had the chance. Kept to your drug dens, casinos, cantinas and dockyards and stayed away from things that actually matter. But you didn't. And now because of that, your done."

With that Kylo Ren thrust out his hand and bolts of purple lightning flew from his fingertips directly at Han's unprotected face.

Han was so surprised at the lightning that he did not even consider jumping out of the way. He simply watched in poker stiff shock as the deadly energy came flying at him and waited to meet his end.

But the next thing he knew, he was being pushed out of the way and thrown down into the snow. From his position with his face half buried in snow. He was only half aware of the terrible screaming and the sound of Finn shouting out Rey's name.

Han quickly rolled over to his back. Just in time to see Rey's body being blasted with his sons…..with Kylo Ren's force lightning. She was still screaming unceasingly as her body jaggified wildly from the power as she contorted in horrific ways from her torment.

Finally, after what seemed like ages. Finn turned to Kylo Ren and ignited Luke's old lightsaber. With the blue blade in hand he ran at Kylo Ren who was forced to break off his attack on Rey to defend himself. But before he broke off the attack he thrust out with his power. Rey flew off her feet and went crashing into a tree, only to fall to the ground seemingly as lifeless as a stone.

Han made his way to get to his feet but was stopped by both Chewie and Finn yelling as he swung his lightsaber at Kylo Ren, who dodged and weaved effortlessly out the way. "I'll hold him off. Go and get the ship. Get the Falcon and get us the hell out of here!" Finn yelled desperately.

He could not talk anymore as Kylo stopped playing passively with him and launched into his own attack that had Finn reeling back. His lightsaber was waving desperately to fend off the dark warrior.

Han looked at Chewie and then at Rey who was cut off between them and the battling warriors. With a sigh of resignation Han and Chewie got to their feet and headed off as fast as they could towards the falcon.

 **Kylo Ren - POV**

Despite his fear, Finn raises his blade in welcome as he blocks another one of Kylo Ren's testing thrusts and prepares for another one to come his way. Kylo Ren charges at him and lunges forward in another half-hearted but still very deadly attack. Finn deflects Ren's spark-spitting blade and scrambles out of the way as Kylo turns and attacks with a waist high cut which Finn flings himself backwards to avoid

Finn rallies to his feet. But he is well aware that he does not stand a chance in this battle. He doesn't even know how to use a lightsaber. He had survived this long due to his training with the stun baton. But the lightsaber felt clumsy and awkward in his had and it felt almost completely weightless. So far he had come close to taking off his own arm with it at least three times.

It was only dumb luck and the fact that Kylo Ren was clearly toying with him that he was still alive. Even as he wondered how he was going to save Rey and get out of here. Kylo brought his lightsaber slamming down on his hasty defence and send him crashing to the ground due to the sheer force behind the blow.

Finn waited for the blow to come but instead of finishing him off while he was helpless. Kylo Ren clearly wanted to play with him a little bit more. He reached out with his hand and Finn felt himself being lifted off his feet as if he were in the grip of an invisible god.

Finn looked into the still golden eyes of Kylo Ren as the dark lord uttered a single word. "Traitor."

Then Finn felt himself flying backwards until he collided with a tree that sent him sprawling to the ground as he moaned in agony from the damage to his back. Luke's lightsaber flew from his hand and landed in the snow a short distance away from him as he had flown through the air.

Kylo Ren looked at the lightsaber, then back at his fallen enemy. He considered for a moment just using his new increased powers in the Force to end the pathetic wretch right here and now. He could use the Force to snap his neck like a twig or use his newly gained power of force lightning to reduce his body to a smoking husk in an instant.

But as he thought about it he realised that such as simple death in the middle of the woods would not do for a traitor to the First Order. A man (using the term loosely) who had betrayed them not once, but twice over. A traitor who had been the reason for Kuvira to put her life in danger both on Jakku and right now in the battle over Starkiller.

That realisation made Kylo Ren clench his fist in protective fury and his hatred for the miserable traitor spiked, fuelling the dark side with its burning heat. Kylo thrust out his hand again and once more lightning burst forth to engulf the wretch! He did not pour too much power into the lightning. While he was still getting used to the sensation of using it. He knew from his master's teachings that too much power would turn the victim to ash in a flash.

He wanted to make this hurt as much as possible. So, he reduced the energy to set his enemies nerves aflame, but to keep his body intact. For now.

Finn screamed in pain as the lightning engulfed his entire body in fire. He had experienced pain from his training and previous injuries, but this took him to new heights of pain as he writhed and flailed in his desperate half made attempt to escape the onslaught.

But it was no use. He couldn't escape and he could not fight back. He tried to curl into a ball to gain some small measure of shelter, of relief from the indescribable pain. But the lightning continued to flow, and he found himself unable to stop screaming!

He just wanted it to stop. For him to escape the pain. He would welcome death right now. He had run and fought for so long since Jakku. All for the aim of having a life of his own to lead. But he would gladly take oblivion right now if it allowed this suffering to end.

But Kylo Ren had no intention of allowing him the release of death just yet. He had only just begun to discover his power and he had only just started giving the traitor his well-deserved punishment!

He would have happily carried on until the bastard's heart gave out. But he was distracted by the sight of Luke's lightsaber flying past his face, apparently unassisted.

He whipped his head around, the lightning dying as his concentration was broken. The traitor stopped screaming as the lightning faded and he slipped mercifully into unconsciousness. His body left in the snow, smoking and giving off involuntary spasms. Kylo Ren was not sure if he would live or die. But he could not careless either way.

He was much more focused on the sight of the desert scavenger Rey standing before him. Staring at the lightsaber in her hands if she could not quite believe what had just happened.

To be honest neither could Kylo Ren. He knew that she was strong in the Force. And her warning to Chewbacca earlier had made it clear that she had a greater access to her sense and attunment to the Force then he had realised. But to call a lightsaber across a distance of twenty metres required at least a few months of intense training for a neophyte.

Kylo just continued to stare at her as he tried to puzzle out what the hell had happened to make this peasant girl suddenly so learned in the arts of the Force. Could it be that when he had linked their minds, she had been able to take more then just his personal thoughts from his mind?

Had she also gained access to his training experience?

But he was forced to abandon his musings when she activated the lightsaber and the blue blade burst from the hilt as it cast the forest in a sapphire glow. In response he activated his own lightsaber in case she was actually stupid enough to attack him directly.

The next thing he knew, she was charging at him. Lightsaber held over her head in a prepared swing at his head. He could not help a smirk appearing across his face. Her nativity and amateurishness. It was almost adorable.

She swung her lightsaber in a downward arch meant to bisect him from shoulder to waist. But he simply raised his weapon and battered the pedestrian assault away. She looked at him in shock. Had she had actually thought it would be that easy?!

After a moment of shock, she snarled in frustration and swing at him again. This time he did not even insult his blade by blocking it. He stepped out of the way of her swing and swung his own lightsaber down on top of it, sending both blades into the snow-covered ground.

He took the moment to swipe his elbow across her face as they both leaned over their downed weapons. He made contact with her left cheek and sent her reeling back in pain and confusion as she tried to get her rattled head in order. In that moment he thrust his hand out and sent her flying backwards with the Force. She came crashing into the snow bank and carried on by momentum to smash into a tree stump.

She got to her feet, swaying and groaning as she did so. She looked at Kylo with a mixture of rage, frustration and despair. But also, among her feelings in the force was confusion.

She seemed unable to process why she was being dominated so completely. It was as if with her retrieval of the lightsaber, she had expected to feel a sudden rush of power and skill to overwhelm and destroy him.

He had already figured out what was going on. She had gained access to his memories during their mind link and in that time she had virtually downloaded all his years of training with Luke and to an extent his time with Snoke. But she had no experience to draw on to use it properly. She was like a child who had been shown the correct way to use a technique but had never actually done it herself.

It made her stance, her strikes and her defences weak and predictable. Meanwhile he had years of actual training experience and years of leading missions into actual combat.

He twirled his lightsaber in an extravagant flourish, enjoying the look of hopelessness grow on her face as she realised he was done playing with her.

He lept at her and landed right to the right side before she could swivel around to face him. Using the moment, he lashed out with a side kick to her ribcage and was satisfied to hear her cry out as she went flying through the air to land hard on the ground again. This time he did not give her time to recover.

He dashed forward and brought his lightsaber slicing down, intending to take her head off her shoulders. But while she was a neophyte she had some reflexes. She rolled out of the way and scrambled to her feet just as his lightsaber bit a furrow in the wintery earth where her neck had just been.

He lept forward again and she ran to meet him, clearly desperately trying to call on the Force to anticipate and block his attacks. Kylo Ren could feel the Force flow into her. But she had no concept of how to grasp and direct it. It was like she was trying to grip water as it flowed through her hands. As a result, her moves were clumsy, and she was helpless as he smacked her blade to the side and followed up the movement up with a Ataru spinning kick that sent his boot crashing to her jaw.

She screamed as blood began to spurt from her mouth and he was fairly certain a tooth or two were now cracked.

He came at her again and attacked with the fury of the Juyo form. The most aggressive and dark side orientated of the seven lightsaber forms. With the strength and fury of a berserker he hammered at her defences as she was forced to stagger back and back under the power of his blow until she was backed up against the trunk of one of the tree's.

As he knocked her blade away, he slashed at her torso intending to cleave her in half. Only for her too duck at the last second and avoid his attack. A lock of her hair was sheered off by the passing blade as she ducked and the tree that she was up against was sent crashing to the ground as it was cut away from its stump.

Rey showed some sense and skill when she stabbed her lightsaber forward like a spear intending to skewer him as he was pressed up close to her from his last attack.

But Kylo had anticipated the blow and had spun out of the way as he used the force to pick up the fallen tree that had come to rest on the floor. The Dark Side rushed to obey and the tree lept of the ground as if it weighed nothing.

Before Rey's eyes could even widen at the display of power in front of her. He sent the tree hurling towards her like a battering ram.

He could feel Rey's shock with no time to dodge. She instinctively threw up a barrier to shield herself from the impact. It was partially successful. She was not killed on the spot. But she was still hit by the tree and came crashing to the ground in a screaming heap.

But it was then that Kylo noticed that the planet was shaking beneath his feet. Not just from the impact of the tree or the result of his duel with Rey which had saturated the area with Force energy. He could feel the ground beneath his feet vibrating and shuddering. With the magnitude of the tremors seeming to be increasing and quickly.

While his opponent was moaning on the floor he reached out with the force to sense his surroundings and the events on the planet. What he sensed filled him with shock and no small amount of horror.

The oscillator had been completely destroyed. Both by the bombs that filthy Wookie had set off and by the Resistance fighter attacks. He stretched his senses down into the heart of the planet and felt himself grow cold.

The planets core equilibrium was completely in flux. The planets stability and internal make up was literally crumbling down upon itself. Even now massive shockwaves were being sent out across the planet mantle and huge amounts of unfathomable energy were being fired across tectonic fault lines.

The reason was clear. Despite the ejection of the planetary weapons quintessence and accumulated dark matter. The sudden loss of the oscillator had caused the remaining power (which was still massive) to be released in massive shock waves directly into the core. Now the planet was in very real danger of shaking apart or exploding!

Even if it did not the tremors were going to be enough to shatter landmass and break continents in half!

Kylo Ren looked to see Rey staggering to her feet and making her way to where the traitor lay on the ground with her lightsaber still aimed at him. She was holding it in a sloppy version of the Soresu form, built for defence, but with the grace of a youngling.

He set his eyes in a grimace. He had played with her long enough. Too long in fact, and now time was running out fast. Now this needed to end!

He raised his hand as he prepared to unleash his lightning. And this time it would be to kill instantly!

He saw Rey raise her weapon to catch the lightning that she knew was coming. He also sensed her raise a force barrier to protect herself and her companion on the ground.

'No matter' he thought. He would simply rip through it and finish this.

But before he could unleash the lightning. A blaster bolt fired out of the forest and struck Rey in the back of her left shoulder! She screamed at the pain and the shock as she was sent to the floor and the lightsaber fell from her suddenly nervous fingers.

She lay there moaning from her multiple injuries as she pressed her new blaster wound into the cold snow for some relief.

Kylo was stunned as he watched a figure emerge from the darkness with her blaster pistol still aimed and ready.

'Kuvira?!'

She came out of the snow and darkness like a wraith. She was dressed in her First Order uniform and her greatcoat around her against the cold. She was looking at Rey at first to make sure that she was well and truly out for the count. She then looked at the unconscious traitor, and (not to gently) kicked him in the head to check if he was a threat.

With that done. She raised her head to look at Kylo Ren. She then turned to view the uprooted trees, lightning scorch marks and other evidence of battle left around the clearing. Then she turned back to him.

"Masterful work, lord Ren." She praised with a smile gracing her lips. It was a small smile, but it was clearly sincere. "I was able to get some images from my TIE fighter before I put it down. And I must say, I am deeply impressed." She said in her usual polite professional tone.

But beneath it was an undercurrent of something that made Kylo's heart race and his body tense up.

But before he could respond the Grand Admiral continued. "As I am sure you are aware we have a limited amount of time to vacate this planet. The core is unstable, and it is a fifty/fifty chance if the planet will remain intact." She summarised.

As she spoke, suddenly a colossal chunk of the forest right behind where she and Rey were dropped away as the curst began to crack under the tectonic stress. Kuvira and her wounded foes now found themselves standing on the edge of a large cliff as tree's fell into it with loud crashing sounds. The cliff in question also appeared to open up to a newly formed fissure of molten hot rock that ran across the gap like a river of fire.

Kuvira studied the fissure for a second before she turned back. "Case in point." She nodded to the gash in the earth. "The evacuation order has been given. We are likely one of the last people on the surface. My TIE is a short distance that way." She gestured back in the direction she had come. "But there is no guarantee it will be there for much longer based on the crusts fragility. I must ask that you accompany me back to my ship so we can escape the planet. We have a war to win after all." She finished as she looked at Kylo Ren expectantly.

Kylo did not need to consider long. "It would be my pleasure Admiral. Lead the way." He said in a tone that was bordering on…..playful?

Kuvira did not give much of a physical reaction. She was too disciplined for that. But he did notice that her nostrils flared slightly, and her eyes became slightly diluted at his words.

She shook the aroused emotions away as she looked down at the paralysed enemies. It was also a way for her to stop looking at his new and incredibly alluring golden eyes.

"Can you please carry Rey back to the TIE please. I assume you still want your map and I still have high hopes for her within the First Order. I will dispose of this scum right here". She said as she raised her blaster and aimed it at the back of the unconscious Finn's head.

"No, please". Rey weakly protested through her blood-soaked mouth as she feebly raised a hand to prevent her friend's death.

Kylo Ren rolled his eyes as he approached them. Kuvira meanwhile looked down at her with something akin to pity.

"I am sorry Rey. But you still have a service to perform for Lord Ren and I see your potential as to valuable to waste. He serves no such purpose." She said. Her words were soft. Almost kind.

"Besides Rey. This man is nothing more than a traitor and a deserter. He abandoned and even killed his long-term friends and squad mates on Takodana." She explained and her words took on the chant of a proverb.

'Trust not a man who has betrayed his master. Nor take him into your own service. Lest he betray you.' She recited

"Trust me when I tell you Rey. Your life will be better off without him in it. You will thank me for this one day." She finished as she raised her blaster and took fresh aim at Finn's skull.

"NO!" Rey screamed.

Kylo sensed the danger a second too late.

Using her last reserves of strength and with her emotions unstable and swirling inside her. Rey lashed out with the Force in a last desperate explosion of power! The Force was gathered into Rey and then instinctively released in a sudden outward burst that sent a shockwave through the forest in a small but powerful Force repulse!

Kylo Ren threw up a barrier just in time to prevent him from being hurled across the clearing. Instead he was only forced to take two large steps back to regain his balance.

But Kuvira was closer to Rey. And she did not have the Force to shield herself from the blast.

Before she could even think to react. She was picked up off her feet and sent flying backwards. The blaster pistol fired as she instinctively clenched her hand at the sudden flight. The bolt slammed into the ground less then a foot away from Finn's left ear.

Rey scrabbled to see to her friend she had saved from death moments ago.

But Kylo Ren could only watch in mute horror as Kuvira's form was hurtling backwards across the snow-covered ground. Then he watched as gravity inevitably reasserted itself.

And she was pulled mercilessly down into the canyon that had opened up to the lava below.

* * *

 **Authors Note**

 **Wow. Finally finished. I kept rewriting that chapter, trying to get it right.**

 **Please read and review. I would appreciate some feedback on this chapter and anything you would like to add or suggest.**

 **In addition, I have another favour to ask.**

 **I have in my spare time been working on some other fanfic idea's. I have not uploaded them because I hate when people work on multiple stories and then take ages to update them all. But anyway, I have too many draft stories and working on them all is taking up too much time. So, I would like to put it to a vote on which one to focus on in my spare time. When I am not working on 'The Reclaimer'.**

 **I have listed them here. Just let me know which draft fanfic you like the sound of and would be interested to see uploaded. Cheers**

 **Legacy of Carthage – Percy Jackson: Heroes of Olympus series with Carthaginian Demigods helping to fight the giants with the Greeks and the Romans.**

 **Pharaoh's of Westeros – Game of Thrones: The Children of the Forest break the arm of Dorne in the Dawn War. But in doing so they create a huge river to form across Dorne. This causes Dornish culture and history to develop in a very different way. This river is called, the Nile.**

 **House Aeducan – Game of Thrones/Dragon Age: The underground city of Orzammar is founded in the Riverland's during the reign of the Long Night. How will this affect the history of Westeros?**

 **World of Monsters – Mass Effect/Monster Hunter: Hoping to adopt the 'World of Monsters' story by reptilia28. Have not asked yet. But have some ideas to continue it.**

 **Anyway, that is all of them. Let me know if any of those sound interesting and if so let me know which ones you prefer. Thanks again.**


	20. Chapter 20 - Convergence

**Lady Syndra: I agree. Unfortunately, sometimes even the greatest generals and admirals can get caught by the trap of thinking that they have already won.**

 **Kksambo: Thank you as always for your reviews. I always enjoy reading them and seeing how you point out many things that I completely agree with. In this case I agree that the Percy Jackson books was missing a bit in terms of female leads. I know that Annabeth was meant to fill that role, but I always found her more annoying then anything else. Thalia as well as she inherited Zeus arrogance and entitlement and later joined with the Hunters. I would like the Hunters as female characters if they were not such sexist hypocrites. I also agree that Percy is too naïve and is far to loyal to a 'family' of gods who truly do not deserve it. That is why in my drafted-out story I have worked in the typical Carthaginian religion and have found their gods to be much more united and relatable then the Olympians. In regard to your requested about a string female OC character as the lead. I will see what I can do.**

 **Guest: Thanks for the review. I hope this meets your expectations.**

 **Artemis Persephone Jackson: Thanks for the review as always. I hope I did not keep you waiting in vain.**

 **Rhyming With Oranges: Thank you for your comments on my chosen path with Han. I am trying to incorporate a little of how he acted towards Darth Caedus in legends. I always felt that Han seemed to give up on his son Jacen really quickly and then seemed almost eager to kill him afterwards without trying for 'redemption'. Given how in canon Ben and Han had hardly any proper father son relationship. I think this is a how Han and Kylo Ren would realistically react with each other. Also thank you for your vote on which draft fanfiction to focus on. Like you I love Game of Thrones and Egypt which is why I made the combination.**

 **TishaLiz: Thanks for your review as always I really appreciate all of them. In regard to your comment about the quality difference across the chapter. I wrote the chapter spread out across different days. It is always harder to start a chapter and trying to set the scene then it is once the story starts to flow. Also, sometimes I find it hard to write the story and sometimes I am in the zone. I am really glad that you liked Kylo Ren's new powers and his fight scenes. With his spirit intact and his hatred for his father cemented. He has accessed greater power in the dark side and Rey's neophyte training and luck is now no match for him.**

 **Guest: Thanks for the review. I hope this meets your expectations.**

 **Miss Luny: HAHAHAHA. I hope this new chapter continues to keep you entertained.**

 **buzzsaw935: Thanks for the review. I am glad you liked it.**

 **bethcandy21: Thank you very much for your review. I do appreciate them, and they encourage me to continue writing the story people like. In regard to the points you made. I am glad that you like Kuvira as a string OC lead character and that you like how her relationship with Kylo Ren has developed. I have received requests to make the relationship move faster. But I wanted to remain true to who they are as people to write the relationship they deserve. Things take a major step in their relationship in this chapter. I hope you enjoy it. I am also glad that you like the way I have portrayed the First Order, Rebellion and the Dark Side. I have always been a bit of a devil's advocate. But I think that the Star Wars story is far too one sided. Both sides have strengths and flaws and I am hoping to make that point more clear.**

 **Mnmaloney: Thanks for your review. I am glad you liked the story so far. I hope this next chapter continues to live up to your hopes.**

 **Chapter 20 – Convergence**

 **Starkiller Base – Forest**

 **Kylo Ren - POV**

Kylo Ren watched as Kuvira began to fall into the glowing abyss that was at the bottom of the gaping gash in the skin of the planet. He could see her hair had come partially loose from his carefully tied military braid and was now beginning to cascade past her shoulders, manipulated by gravity.

He could see her face as she began to fall. Her eyes were wide with surprise as she clearly had not believed that she was in any danger from a beaten and defeated young scavenger from Jakku. Her eyes were also filled with disbelief. She was finding it difficult to grasp that her entire life in the First Order. All her achievements, her victories, her tactics, her rise to power had culminated in this ignominious death in a dark forest on a crumbling planet.

But she was also feeling acceptance of the situation. She had known for many years that she could die at any time, on any world, performing any task. She had known from the moment that she had first sat in the cockpit of her very first TIE fighter on her first mission as a simple pilot, that she might not be coming back from that mission.

As she grew older and rose through the ranks of the First Order navy to the penultimate rank of Grand Admiral, second only in authority to the Supreme Leader himself. She had continued to understand that all her power and accomplishments could be undone, and her life lost in a single bad day.

That she could die in battle or on the bridge of the Reclaimer. And that she could just as likely (or more likely) be killed by a stray blaster bolt or killed by an assassin in the dark with a vibroblade. Kuvira had been forced to accept, from an early age, that her life was likely not going to end peaceably in bed during old age. That she was likely to die young at a moment when she least expected it.

She had long ago forced herself to come to terms with the uncertainty and the inevitability of her demise. Just as she had been forced to face the unpleasant fact that upon her death, whenever it was, she would leave so much unfinished. So much that would still need to be done in the galaxy to bring the First Order to power and ensure its new Empire would be a stable legacy to long outlive her.

She had also taken time to acknowledge and accept that when she died. She would likely die alone. That she would be cursed by her enemies and missed by her loyal troops and officers.

But that she would be truly mourned by few, if any at all. Possibly her aide Nephitina would miss her as more then one misses a valuable strategist or an inspiring military leader. But instead as one misses a companion or maybe even a friend.

Whether or not that was true was something that Kuvira had long ago forced herself to acknowledge as irrelevant. As long as she died in her mission to ensure the survival and ascendance of the First Order as the only ruling galactic power. It did not matter how she died or if anyone gave her passing so much as a second thought. To think otherwise as nothing short of delusional and the highest order of vanity.

These were traits that she despised in Hux and those like him. And she would throw herself into a sarlacc pit before she allowed such corruption and weakness to form within her.

But beneath all of that and through the Force Kylo Ren could sense something else that was slowly beginning to surface across her face and her presence in the Force.

She felt disappointed.

She felt disappointed that she would now not be able to make so many choices. Take so many actions that she had been planning and considering for most of her life to fulfil her lifelong mission to crush the New Republic and ensure that the domination of the First Order was established among a stable and peaceful galaxy.

He sensed that she was also disappointed about something else. Whatever it was it was a deeply personal nature as her mental shield had been slammed in place over these thoughts, feelings and hopes for so long that they were almost unperceivable to him.

But with her emotions and thoughts running high during what she was certain were going to be the last seconds of her life before her fiery end. Her mental discipline had weakened, and she allowed herself to consider things that she had long ago consigned to the realm of impossible dreams.

He saw images, and voices flash past his eyes and his mind as the Force allowed him to view what Kuvira was seeing as her mind flashed before their eyes. It happened at the speed of thought. The images and senses going so fast that to the untrained mind it would have been impossible to follow them.

He saw Kuvira standing on the bridge of the Reclaimer, watching in pride and triumph as the First Order Fleet wiped out the burning remains of the New Republic and Resistance fleets.

He saw her standing on a world that he recognised as Coruscant. She was wearing her First Order dress blacks as she stood next to the Supreme Leader as endless crowds of citizens cheered and waved First Order flags and banners, as the statue of Bail Organa was torn down from the central plaza of the rotunda building.

He saw her sitting on a balcony as she overlooked a beautiful tropical landscape, complete with waterfalls, rivers, jungle cliffs and white sandy beaches bordering a blue ocean. She was wearing an elegant but comfortable lilac dress that exposed some skin to allow for the heat but ensured that her poised dignity was maintained. He recognised this world too. It was Rishi, a world that the First Order had business dealings with in the past. It was a favoured vacation and retirement location. But he had no idea that the world had struck such a cord with Kuvira at the time.

Next he saw Kuvira standing with her back to him. She was in her personal quarters on board the Reclaimer in her usual uniform. She seemed to be staring intensely at the object she was holding in her arms. Whatever it was it was likely some important information or tech that…..He stopped short as the image of Kuvira turned to face him, allowing him a full view of what she was holding.

In her arms was a bundle of red cloth. He noticed with shocked amusement that the cloth was also stamped with the black symbol of the First Order.

But the bundle was moving, and as he watched the dream playout he saw a small arm reach out and grab at Kuvira's extended index finger as she smiled down at the infant that began to laugh as he/she played with his mother's offered digit.

Kylo Ren was so stunned by that image that he almost failed to react as the next image flashed across his vison. He saw Kuvira standing alone, but as he watched he saw a figure approach and stand next to her in a way and position that could not be mistaken for anything but intimate. He tried to extend his senses into this image to determine the identity of the second figure. Whoever it was it felt, familiar.

But that was all he could see as the images began to recede and fade away as Kuvira actively cleared her mind as she prepared to accept her fate with all the dignity and grace she could muster.

Time seemed to speed up where it had been almost frozen seconds ago. Kylo Ren watched as Kuvira's fall seemed to pick up speed as she closed her eyes and he sensed her let go of all the thoughts and half-forgotten dreams that had been cascading through her head moments ago.

She was prepared to go. And she made no move to scream or cry or flail as she dropped down towards the burning lava at the bottom of the crevasse.

But while she might have been prepared to accept this outcome. Kylo Ren had no intention of allowing this to happen.

"NNNNNNOOOOOOOOO!" He screamed as he thrust both his hands forward and command the force to embrace Kuvira and hold her fast.

Darkside power erupted from his open palms and he felt the Force obey his command as Kuvira's descent was brought to a shuddering halt as she found herself suspended in mid-air over the flaming gorge. Kylo Ren kept his focus solely on Kuvira as he felt dark side flow through him like a divine wind as he held gravity itself at bay and bent it to his will.

Kuvira for her part had snapped her eyes back open as she felt her fall halt instantly. She looked over at the spot where Kylo Ren was holding out his arms toward her as she saw him grit his teeth in concentration as he kept the Force on her in its tight embrace.

For a brief moment their eyes met, as emerald green stared into molten gold in a stare that seemed to carry so many words yet transcended the mundane use of language.

But then Kuvira's eyes left his and fixated on something behind and above him. It was then, as Kylo Ren felt his other external senses comeback to him. That he noticed the light that had begun to form shadows against the darkness on the snow-covered ground. He also heard the unmistakable sound of a star ship engine as it lowered itself to standby mode and reached ground level.

Turning his head, he saw the beaten up, rusted frame of the Millennium Falcon as it lowered itself to the ground and the boarding ramp descended to reveal his father….to reveal that criminal scum Han Solo standing on the ramp with his hand on the supports due to his legs.

He looked at Kylo Ren briefly as his face took on a look of sadness momentarily. Then it was swept aside as he scowled at his son. Kylo Ren saw the look and returned it with a snarling glare of burning hatred. He would have killed Han Solo by now if he did not need to keep his attention on Kuvira, who was still suspended over the gaping canyon beneath her.

But the planet started to shake again, much more violently then it had on the previous quakes. Han was slammed into the support struts of the boarding ramp and was forced to wrap his arms around it tightly to remain standing. His mouth was curled in a grimace and a hiss of pain escaped his clenched teeth as his injured legs were forced to cope with the motion.

Not far away, Rey and a semi-conscious Finn were thrown back to the ground as they were knocked off their feet by the seismic shift.

Kylo Ren himself was forced to anchor himself in position with the Force to prevent the shaking ground from throwing him to the floor as well. In spite of his quick actions he did stumble before he was able to regain his footing. At the same time Kuvira fell a few feet before Kylo Ren was able to reassert his force grip on her body and ensure that she did not fall to her death.

"Come on! Get on the ship now!" Han yelled at his two young companions as they struggled to their feet once more. "The entire planet could be destroyed any second!"

 **Rey - POV**

That got some reaction from Rey and Finn as they staggered to their feet and made their slow journey to the boarding ramp. But they were too badly injured for them to make much more then a slow walking pace.

Rey was still fighting back the intense pain that she had gained during her battle with Kylo Ren. Her face was bruised and bloody. She was also sure she had a back tooth missing. She was covered in bruises and lacerations that leaked a steady stream of blood on her clothes and onto the soft powered snow. Staining it in crimson footprints as she moved forward.

She was also certain that she had a few cracked or maybe even broken ribs from when she had been hit with the tree. The only reason she had not died instantly was because she had somehow known to throw up some kind of mental barrier before the fallen timber battering ram. But the force of the blow had still felt like being hit with a speeding swoop bike.

Now she was barely able to keep hobbling across the snow towards the desperately waving Han with Finn leaning on her for support even more then she was leaning on him.

Finn was in a similar situation to her. He had been subjected to intense blunt force trauma when Kylo Ren had slammed him into the ground or into trees. And then he had every nerve ending in his body fried like bacon by the Force lightning Kylo Ren had tortured him with. Now he was only semi-conscious as his mind tried to recover from the intense synaptic shock that it had been subjected to. At the same time his body was still trying to fight off the residual effects of the lightning and as a result he was being subjected to agonising and near constant muscle spasms.

Between the two of them they were little better then crippled as the staggered and limped their way over to their rescue ship with all the urgency the situation demanded. But with all the speed and grace of a drunken Houk.

This wasted time that they did not have on a planet that might be an asteroid field in mere moments.

Seeing this, Chewie (who had descended that ramp after putting the ship down) lept out of the ship and ran toward his two injured human companions. With the strength that all Wookie's were famous/infamous for. He lifted both of the humans into his arms and placed them over his shoulders.

He ignored their hisses and groans of pain as he jostled them and irritated their injuries. There was no time for such considerations. He would get their injuries seen too once they were off this planet and away from the First Order.

Kylo Ren watched all of this as he kept Kuvira suspended and began to move her away from harm and back onto firm ground.

But when he saw his hated enemies on the verge of escaping. He felt a new increase in his rage and his power as the dark side flowed into him once more and filled him with both the resolve and the will to end this right here and now.

"You're not going to get away! Not this time!" He shouted over his shoulder to his foes as they moved past him to the boarding ramp.

As his words echoed across the dark forest. He pulled on of his hands away from its previous position and pivoted his body to the side. His right hand remained focused on Kuvira, keeping her suspended and away from the lava in the canyon. His left had was now aimed squarely at the little rebel band that was clustered at the entrance to the boarding ramp.

Once more the dark side obeyed him as he commanded it to grip the throats of all four of his enemies, and to squeeze.

Instantly Han, Rey, Finn and Chewbacca began to cough and splutter as they all suddenly found their airways cut off. They tried to draw breath, but their heads just became dizzy as they tried to force air into their lungs with no success.

Instinctively, Han, Rey and Finn lifted their hands to their necks, as if to pry off whatever was currently chocking them. But their hands brushed and scrabbled at their exposed necks. Only to find that there was nothing there. Slowly they were forced to their knees as their lungs began to burn and scream out for oxygen only to be denied by the crushing power fixed on their throats.

Finn suffered the worst of the four victims. Already injured and barely able to remain conscious on his own before the Force attack. He found that with this air supply cut off, his body had simply had enough. His eyes rolled back into his head and his hands fell away from his neck. As Rey and Han watched helplessly. Finn fell forward and landed face down in the snow.

Rey and Han struggled to reach him as he fell. Despite the fact that they were about to collapse from the lack of oxygen as well.

But Chewbacca was not going to be reduced to such a state so easily. Wookie lungs are as big and as powerful as the rest of their bodies. And Chewie had managed to get a lungful before he was gripped by the dark side power crushing his windpipe.

Chewie knew instantly what was going on and unlike his human companions. He remained clear headed enough to know where the source of this attack was. Or more accurately, who the source of this attack was.

Chewie turned his blazing feral eyes at the dark form of Kylo Ren. He was still standing with his arms stretched out to either side. Each one performing its own separate task. One trying to save the life of one person. The other trying to squeeze the life out of four other people.

Chewbacca had lived for a long time. He had lived long enough to see his people fight for their homeworld during the Clone Wars. He had seen the Republic betray them and later the Empire enslave them. He had seen war again in his battles with the Rebel Alliance and he had finally gained some measure of peace with the establishment of the New Republic.

More then that. He had gained a new family in Han, Leia and young Ben Solo. Later in life, while he had known that their family relationship was deteriorating. He had never imagined that the sweet little boy hen had played with and protected for years would eventually destroy everything he and his parents had ever worked for.

And now that once sweet boy was staring deep into Chewie's eyes as he tried his best to murder him and his own father.

But unlike Han and Luke. Chewie had long ago buried whatever sympathies and feelings had held for this boy. He had never accepted that Ben Solo was 'dead'. He felt that was simply an excuse. A way to let the brat off more easily by calling him Kylo Ren as if they were different people.

No, Ben Solo was alive and well. And he was currently the enemy trying to kill him and his friends.

But Chewie would not allow that to happen. If Kylo Ren died, the Force choke died with him. And with his arms extended and his weapon away. He had no way to defend himself from a furious, hateful Wookie, who was intent on ripping him limb from limb!

With a roar, Chewie lept to his feet and ran at the startled Kylo Ren with his claws extended and murder in his eyes.

 **Kylo Ren - POV**

Kylo Ren saw the enraged Wookie charging at him and felt his skin grow cold. He wanted to blast the furball back with lightning. But despite his recent increase in power and the strengthening of his connection to the dark side. He was growing tired with the extensive battle that had been fought in the forest. As well as the extensive emotional trauma that had been caused by his conflict with Han Solo.

His powers were already straining to maintain his current level of strength. But soon he would be exhausted and then he would be helpless unless he had time to rest and regain his strength.

His ability to use force lightning was new and despite his clear natural talent for it. It remained unrefined and he found himself unable to call on it in his weakened state.

With that not an option, he called on his burning hatred and increased his power on his force choke. If he could not wait for Chewbacca to die from suffocation. He would crush his larynx and kill him instantly!

He increased the pressure on the Wookie, and he felt the Wookie's muscle and bones begin to strain under the intense pressure. But the Wookie's powerful body was not destroyed so easily, and Chewbacca did not slow down in the slightest. In fact, he seemed to speed up in his desperation to maul the young Sith before he was able to strangle him to death.

He did have another option. He could releasee his grip on Kuvira and focus all his remaining power on the charging Wookie. With all his power focused solely on the Wookie. He would be able to crush his throat into dust in a second. Or he might be able to draw on enough power to summon lightning and turn the beast to a smouldering pile of ash.

But if he did that, Kuvira would fall to her death, and he was not willing to allow that to happen. He knew that his grandfather would admonish him for such weakness to another person in the face of his own death. But he knew his master Snoke would not be happy if his apprentice got his greatest military leader killed.

At least, that was the excuse he would use if his master or anyone else questioned him on this decision.

So, he refused to pull back his power from his force grip on Kuvira. And instead he released the other three rebels from the Force grip. They immediately fell to the ground as they violently choked and coughed as they greedily sucked much needed air into their starved lungs. Once he did that he rechannelled and forced all his remaining will power on crushing the Wookie's internal organs before the great hulking carpet managed to reach him.

But even as he called on the Force and pulled even more power and energy from the Dark Side. He knew it would not be enough. He was simply too tired, his new strength too unrefined, his power too diminished by exhaustion to keep Kuvira alive and to kill Chewbacca before he reached him and twisted his head off his neck like a cork.

So Kylo Ren was left with nothing else to do except wait and hope that the beast would succumb to his attack before he reached him. Even as he knew he would not receive his wish.

But Kuvira was not just remaining idle while she hovered over the lava filled canyon, with her life hanging in the balance.

 **Kuvira - POV**

Kuvira had watched all the events unfold silently and she had seen the return of the Millennium Falcon, the escape attempts of then four rebels and the charging attack of Chewbacca.

She could see that Kylo Ren was using the Force to choke the four rebels to death where the stood. While she was not attuned to the Force herself. She could also tell that he had begun focusing his power against the Wookie, in an attempt to disable or kill the furry brute before he managed to kill Kylo Ren and by extension her.

She may have been hanging suspended in the air like an ancient puppet by mystic forces that were beyond her understanding or interest. But she had no intension of waiting like a helpless child while the cursed Wookie caused her to fall to her death.

On a private note, she was also not willing to sit by and allow the Wookie to kill the man who she was growing noticeably fond of.

Her blaster pistol was long gone. It had fallen into the canyon when she had been thrown from he feet and the force of the attack had carried it down into the lava flow. But that did not mean Kuvira was now without weapons.

Using speed and instinct honed over years of training and hours of private practice. She reached back underneath her greatcoat and quickly reached the back of her belt. From there she pulled out her vibroknife from its concealed sheath along the belt and brought it to her face in a two fingered throwing grip and lined it up with her target.

From an early age she had been taught how to use all manner of weapons, from ranged, to melee to hand to hand. While she was an expert in all of them. She had developed an affinity for the use of vibroknives during the course of her life. She had found them to be an all-purpose weapon. Able to be used in both close range and if thrown correctly, long distance.

She had also found them to be a good way to practice and to release some stress in the training rooms between her various duties. As a result, she had become very proficient in the throwing of vibroblades in combat.

On a good day, she could pin a wasp to a tree at 10 metres…. On a good day.

But this was not a wasp. This was an incredibly angry and powerful Wookie warrior who was moving at his maximum speed in a dark and windswept forest. She had no time to aim, and no time to adjust for the wind or the fact that the Wookie was moving furiously towards Kylo Ren as fast as his powerful body was able to take him.

She raised the knife in her hand and watched with intense concentration at the motions of the Wookie as he moved across the snow towards his target. She watched the rhythm of his legs, the rising and falling of his shoulders and head as he ran and pinpointed the location he was going to be in next.

All the calculations and observations were done in less then two seconds, on the subconscious level. Performed with a dedication, bordering on obsession. Without pausing to think and allowing no time to second guess herself. Kuvira raised her hand and the blade flew out of her fingers with all the speed and accuracy of a blaster bolt.

The weapon flew through the air like a glittering steel dart and in less then a second it made contact with its intended target.

Chewbacca howled in pain as the vibroknife dug into the soft flesh of his upper left leg. Immediately the Wookie fell forward as his injured leg gave way under his tremendous weight. With the sudden loss of balance, the Wookie came ploughing into the ground. This caused the knife in his leg to be jerked around and dug even deeper into the flesh. This brought forth a whole new roar of pain and rage from the Wookie's throat.

Kuvira had a basic knowledge of the anatomy of various species and so she had known where a vital artery could be found on the Wookie's body. However, the substantial, but insufficient amount of blood that was gushing from the wound indicated that she had not managed to hit her target.

The wound was painful and had managed to stop the Wookie's charge, but it had not had the intended effect of killing him.

In fact, even with the new injury and the continuous pressure inflicted by Kylo Ren. The Wookie was even know beginning to rise back to its feet again. Judging by the angry growls and the still extended claws. It fully intended to kill Kylo Ren if it was the last action it did before death.

Kuvira scowled at this annoying display of resilience, (even if she admired it on some level). In response she reached into her boot and pulled out her second vibroknife.

Once again she took aim, targeting a different part of the Wookie's body this time. This through was much easier to perform as the Wookie was no longer running and was instead reduced to a fast limp.

This made the attack much easier to direct and this time, Kuvira intended it to put the Wookie down permanently.

Chewbacca was no less than five feet away from Kylo Ren with his claws outstretched, reaching to tear off Kylo's extended arm. When a flash of silver shot past and once more buried itself in Chewbacca's body.

Chewbacca's previous roars of pain where now surpassed by howls of sheer agony as he stumbled away from Kylo Ren with his hands reaching up to try and pull out the knife that was embedded in his left eye!

Blood was cascading from the wound, and as the half mad Wookie pulled the blade out of the tattered remnants of what seconds ago, had been a working eye. The blood flow became a torrent.

Chewbacca pressed both his hands to his face as the blood began to seep through his clenched fingers and his fur began to grow matted from the blood staining his entire left side and face. With the pain being too much, combined with the continuous choke hold by Kylo Ren, the Wookie was overwhelmed and fell back into the snow, which soon began to turn red. He remained on his back with his hands still clasping at his ruined face, but no longer even able to summon the strength to howl out his pain, rage or despair.

"Chewie!" Han screamed with both fear and rage, as he hobbled over to his friend while he pulled out his blaster pistol.

Kylo Ren saw the blaster pistol coming up and reacted immediately. He had not yet fully mastered the Tutaminis techniques. So, catching the blaster bolt with his hand or blocking it without the use of his lightsaber would be impossible. Ordinarily he would have used his adept level skill in Tutaminis to freeze the blaster bolt in place has he had done on Jakku. But that technique was new to him. A recent lesson from his master, and it was very taxing and required a good deal of focus and power. Power that he did not have in his currently weakened and tired state.

With no other options and his right hand still keeping Kuvira suspended above the lava. He released the injured, bleeding and howling Wookie from the choke hold and called his lightsaber into his hand. He activated the crimson blade and watched with anticipation as the red blade crackled and spat fire. Ready to send Han Solo's blaster bolt right back into his teeth!

But instead of aiming it at his son. He instead aimed it directly at Kuvira! His teeth bared, his face frozen in a grimace of vengeful hatred, he raised the blaster at her heart and fired at the suspended Admiral.

Kuvira was unable to move out of the way of the blaster bolt and instead was forced to bring up what small defence she was capable of. She raised her arms over her head and curled herself into a ball as tightly as she could while ensuring that her head and chest were as protected as possible by her legs and arms. At the same time, she ensured that her back (and thereby her spine) was turned away from Han Solo and the incoming blaster bolt.

The blaster bolt travelled along its path heading straight for Kuvira's heart as Han prayed to the Force that he could take out the First Order bitch who had done this to Chewie. Having seen his friend he knew that the worst-case scenario saw Chewie dead from the knife piercing his brain. The best-case scenario saw him permanently blind in that eye. He had seen injuries like that and knew there was no saving Chewie's sight after this.

But was just the most recent reason why he wanted to kill Kuvira. Others included the damage to his own legs on Takodana, and all the friends he had lost that day and others. And there was the matter of the strange relationship she clearly had with his son…. with Kylo Ren. For all he knew this schutta was also the fulcrum that kept Ben in service to the First Order instead of coming home, where he belonged.

And that thought made him even more determined to see her skull blown out by his blaster pistol before he left this planet!

The bolt slammed into Kuvira's defending left arm which had been placed over her chest where her heart would have been if she had not assumed the defensive ball position.

She gritted her teeth as she felt her skin melt and the plasma impact on the muscle and bone of her arm. She could smell the stench of burning clothes and flesh as the wound cauterised and the pain she felt seemed to triple as the shock and adrenaline began to fade away.

She flexed her fingers on her left hand to make sure that there was no serious nerve damage and that she had the full use of her hand. Her fingers moved normally to her relief. But the actions sent shards of pain shooting down her arm and she once again was forced to hiss in pain through her clenched teeth. She refused to allow this pitiful band of rebels, traitors and beasts to hear her cry out in pain. She would not allow them to gain that satisfaction or allow the damage to her pride.

Nor would she allow Kylo Ren to hear her display such pathetic weakness.

But she did not know how many blaster bolts she could endure or survive. And as she heard Han Solo curse and fire again. She braced herself for more pain or for death.

But when she heard the blaster bolt get smacked away and the blazing hum of Kylo Ren's lightsaber she allowed herself to open her eyes and take her head of the protective position behind her arms.

Kylo Ren had placed himself between her and his father. His lightsaber was smacking blaster bolts into the tree's as Han Solo continued to fire his weapon. Sometimes the bolts seemed to be aimed at her and sometimes at Kylo Ren. It seemed as if Solo was trying to take them both down, and maybe was trying to confuse Kylo by giving him two targets to protect.

But Kylo Ren was too skilled to allow this cheap trick to fool him. He spun his lightsaber in a furious serios of arches that sent the blasters bolts away from him while ensuring that none of them made it past him to Kuvira. Kuvira meanwhile was wishing she had carried more than just the two blades as back up weapons. If she had just one more she might be able to send it straight into Han Solo's throat.

Meanwhile Han did not seem to notice the futility of his efforts. He just kept firing his blaster as fast as he could and as randomly as he could as if he was just hoping that he would get luck and hit one of his targets. This continued until Kylo Ren got bored of this and sent a blaster bolt right back at Han Solo's weapon hand.

The plasma blast hit right on the side of the weapon at the place where Han's flesh was wrapped tightly around the metal of the pistol as he fired. The bolt breached the metal casing, causing the power pack to ignite and overload. Before Han could fully release the weapon to tend to his injured hand, the blaster exploded in a shower of metal fragments and energised dedlanite.

The blast threw Han backwards and caused his hand to be injured further as the flesh was burned black and the skin and tissue was seared clean off his palms and wrists.

Han fell into the snow and immediately buried his blackened hand in the frozen water as he shouted in pain to join the still agonised Chewie lying on the ground only a few feet from him, still clutching the ruin of his left eye.

 **Kylo Ren - POV**

Kylo Ren watched in supreme satisfaction and Han Solo and his closest friend writhed on the ground clutching their various injuries. But he could not enjoy the moment long before he was once again forced to deflect blaster bolts away from himself and Kuvira as that miserable traitor FN-2187 starting firing at him with his previously discarded blaster rifle.

As Kylo Ren deflected the blaster bolts away he watched as the Jakku smuggler girl ('Rey' he remembered her name was) run up to the still prone Han and the Wookie as the latter began to stumble to his feet.

"Come on Han, we have to get out of here! The planet could blow up any second!" She screamed as she pulled Han to his feet as he desperately cradled his mangled and blackened hand to his chest.

With a groan of agony. Han managed to get to his feet and then went to help Rey support Chewbacca as they placed themselves beneath his arms and helped to guide him to the boarding ramp of the Millennium Falcon. Finn meanwhile backed up to follow them. All the while he kept up his furious barrage at Kylo Ren and Kuvira to hold them at bay. Once they reached the ship he turned and moved to help Han and the Wookie on to the ship along with Rey.

But Kylo Ren was not about to let them escape with their lives. "There is no escape for you this time!" He shouted as he deactivated his lightsaber and raised his hand. Once more he called on the Force to close off their airways and to choke the life out of them before they made it back on to their ship.

Once again the four of them began to cough and gag as they reached the boarding ramp. And this time none of them were in any position to attack him or try to throw off his concentration. They fell back to the ground and Chewbacca was forced to grab one of the ramps supports to prevent himself from falling on the prone Han. But despite their coughing and choking. The pressure on their windpipes did not seem as strong as it was earlier. It still allowed them to breath in a very small capacity.

Kylo Ren knew that he had reached his limit in terms of his energy and Force reserves. After all his displays of power since the battle in the Oscillator. Between surviving a bomb exploding right next to him. Fighting and using his lightning during several battles in the forest. Splitting his power to keep a full-grown woman aloft from death while battling four separate enemies. He had reached the end of his rope and his exhaustion was starting to become critical.

He was unable to use his force choke to its full power. And behind him, he was still unable to move Kuvira safely away from the canyon. Also, she was beginning to experience some jerking and small drops in the air as his powers began to diminish his hold on her.

Kylo Ren gritted his teeth and he watched the rebels and that hated criminal bastard, Han Solo struggle and cough as they fought to get on the ship and to escape from their well-deserved ends. He wanted to march over to the struggling wretch and bury his lightsaber, up to the hilt in his stomach! He wanted to strangle him with his bare hands instead of the Force. It would have been so much more satisfying!

But no matter how much his hatred burned he could not summon up the strength to crush their necks entirely. Nor could he common anything more then a few small arches of lightning between his fingers. Even trying to summon greater power was leaving him feeling light head and only forcing his powers to diminish faster.

Kylo Ren was forced to acknowledge his situation. He was currently exhausted and drained from using his unfamiliar abilities so much and with such intensity. He was splitting his power into two separate tasks and he was draining his power trying to maintain his power.

He was torn physically and mentally between killing Han Solo and his allies or keeping Kuvira alive and safe.

He knew that he did not have much left in him and no matter how much hatred and anger he felt blazing within him. No matter how much he felt the Dark Side rushing through him. He was simply at the limits of his current physical endurance.

No matter what he did. He could not maintain his power any longer. He could not accomplish both of the things he was trying to do. One way or another he was going to lose his grip on the Force chokes and the telekinetic grip on Kuvira.

He could still accomplish one last thing in this battle. But he would need to release the other stream of power so that he could focus all his power on one thing.

If he let go of Kuvira and allowed her to fall to her death. He would have the means to kill his enemies in an instant by snapping their necks like twigs. He would finally rid the galaxy and himself of Han Solo once and for all.

Or he could let Han and the rebels escape the planet and focus all his power to get Kuvira back on the ground and then the two of them could leave in her ship before the planet exploded or until the tectonic shockwave's effects stopped.

But whatever choice he made. He needed to make it now. He could not keep both going any longer.

He clenched his teeth and his eyes shut. Both from the physical exertion and from the weight of his choice. He knew what his grandfather would do. He knew that if Darth Vader had the chance to kill once of his most hated enemies he would do it instantly. If that action cost the life of an Imperial Admiral or even a Grand Admiral. Vader would have done it without a second thought.

The only possible exceptions to this were probably Grand Moff Tarkin and Grand Admiral Thrawn. And that might be more due to the Emperor's reaction at their loss.

But Vader would not allow anything to stop him in his quest to destroy all of his enemies. He would view Ren's indecision as weakness. Would say that he was crippled by compassion and base feelings that were not worthy of a Sith Lord.

He would probably even advocate that like the ancient Sith Lord Darth Malgus. Kylo Ren should kill Kuvira to allow her memory and whatever feelings he felt for her to fuel his power in the Dark Side and to rid himself of the potential weakness she represented.

Ren felt his arms shaking as she fought to maintain their respective tasks and as he felt his last reserves begin to fail him.

But Kylo Ren was not Darth Malgus, or Darth Vader. And while he would always idolise, admire and respect his grandfather. He had resolved to not try to be him any longer.

He was not Darth Vader. He was Kylo Ren. His grandfather had his time and it had come to an end. Now he was the future of the Sith. And like the code of the Sith exalted. He would use his power and his abilities in whatever way he wanted to use them!

He could feel the life of the rebels starting to slip away from their lack of oxygen. But he also felt in that moment Kuvira's body begin to fall. He shook his hand in frustration.

He had to choose, and he had to make that choice now. The universe would not wait for him any longer.

Kuvira could not wait for him any longer!

"AAAARRRRRGGGGGGHHHHHH!" He screamed in rage, frustration and fear as he released his grip on his father and his allies.

As they fell forward. Once again gasping for air. He pivoted on his feet and brought both his arms and all his power to bear on Kuvira as she began to fall down into the fire filled crevasse. She instantly froze in her free fall and he immediately began to bring her back to solid ground.

As he concentrated on bringing her back to safety he noticed two things. First he could hear the boarding ramp of the Millennium Falcon rise and close completely. That could only mean that his bastard of a father had got his allies back inside the ship. Even as he realised that he could hear the ships engines begin to fire up.

The second thing he noticed was that Kuvira was staring at him as she slowly came towards him at his own force command. Emerald met Gold as they stared at each other in a moment when the battle, enemies and even impending exploding planet fell away. In that moment it seemed that they could very well be completely alone in the universe.

She was looking at him with an expression of shock, gratitude, frustration and regret. He could sense her emotions and he saw that she was shocked that he had chosen to save her at the expense of killing the father he despised. She was grateful eh saved her life, obviously. And she was frustrated and regretful that she had not been able to help beyond injuring Chewbacca and that she had not been able to avoid Rey's force repulse in the first place that had led to their enemies escaping.

Just as she was close enough for him to reach out and grasp her extended hand. The planet gave another violent shake and Kylo Ren was sent stumbling forward. Kuvira in turn had just set foot back on the ground and was jolted forward.

They came together with a crash that sent them sprawling to the ground, with Kuvira directly on top of Kylo Ren as the tremors continued and eventually faded away.

Kuvira lept to her feet first. Both to see if there was any chance of stopping the Falcon. And also, to get out of the very compromising position that she and Ren had just been in. But even as she and Ren got to their feet they saw there was no chance.

The Falcon was already rising off the ground. She had no weapons that could stop it and Ren was too exhausted to hold it back with the Force. As they watched the Falcon turned on its axis and blasted off into the sky. In a few seconds it had vanished into the star-studded sky.

Another tremor quickly forced them to realise they needed to get off the planet as soon as possible. Kuvira pulled out her signal beacon to confirm the location. "My ship is a short distance this way, we must get off this planet before its too late." She said in a voice that was not fearful but carried an unmistakable urgency.

Kylo Ren nodded and together they bolted through the tree's as the tremors and earthquakes began to increase in frequency and magnitude. It soon became apparent that they were taking too long to reach the TIE fighter. Kylo Ren was worried that they would either not make it to the fighter before the planet blew up. Or they would not make it before a seismic event left the unattended fighter destroyed or unusable.

They could not afford to waist time. Using the Force to enhance his strength and speed he scooped up Kuvira bridal style in his arms. He was met with only a surprised squeak and he felt her body tense as she consciously resisted her automatic reaction to defend herself with her martial arts training.

Thankfully she quickly realised what he was doing and allowed him to carry her as he sprinted like a dark blur across the snowy landscape.

Within a few moments they found themselves standing by Kuvira's TIE interceptor which had thankfully been spared any damage from the effects of the tortured planet. It only took them a few seconds to get themselves strapped into the cockpit of the fighter. Kylo Ren was sat in the pilot seat. Kuvira was forced to sit on his lap as the space behind the pilot seat would not accommodate a grown person.

This caused an awkward silence to descend on the pair of them as Kuvira tried to pilot the ship while ignoring how she was in a very compromising position that reminded her of how a Twi'lek cantina dancer might have interacted with her clientele.

Meanwhile Kylo Ren was using all of his mental focus and training to ignore the fact that Kuvira's incredibly sharply ass was currently pressed into his lap and in direct contact with his groin. He was also desperately reciting the Sith Code in his head in an attempt to prevent any physical reactions.

Quickly the ship fired up and before long the TIE fighter was heading back to the Retribution as the seismic quakes continued to torment the planet. Whether or not the planet would survive remained to be seen. But that was a matter best discussed and possibly witnessed from the safe distance of the Star destroyer.

As they flew through the skies and space around the planet they noticed a number of TIE fighters that were forming up around them as they flew back to the Retribution. Kylo Ren quickly surmised that these were the survivors of the fighter battle with the Resistance. Neither the enemy fighters nor the falcon was anywhere to be seen. He figured that with their mission to sabotage Starkiller complete, they had already escaped back into hyperspace.

The TIE fighter moved on its way to the Retribution hanger under Kuvira's direction until she was close enough to activate the automated system that would then link with the star destroyer's hanger control and would carry the TIE fighter into the hanger and finish the docking procedure. The principle was the same as having an astromech droid remotely pilot your ship for you. But instead of an attached it droid it was remotely controlled by the star destroyers' central computers.

 **Kuvira - POV**

With no more need to pilot he fighter directly. Kuvira signed and before she could stop herself, she leaned back into the seat to gather her thoughts as she typically did after a mission. When her body came into contact with a warm muscular chest instead of her pilots' seat. She suddenly remembered the circumstances of the flight.

She tensed. But for reasons she could not explain she did not leave her new position. Instead both she and Kylo Ren just sat still for a moment with her sitting on his lap and with her leaning back against his chest. Their faces were almost side to side as she rests her head on his shoulder and they both turned their heads to regard each other in silence.

For a long moment the simply regarded each other as the stresses of the day, the near loss of Starkiller, and the frequent near-death experiences came crashing home to both of them as they began to take stock of everything that had happened during the battle.

Adrenaline that had previously rushed through their bodies began to recede as the brain unleashed waves of natural endorphins and a wide range of other emotional components. It left them both in a state of mind that neither of them was quite used to. It also made them more aware of certain things.

Even when thinking about it much later. Kuvira was still not sure who had made the rest move. She could not say who had acted and who had reacted. Even when her analytical mind was back in control she could not place her exact reasons for what had happened next.

All she knew was that one moment she was looking into Lord Ren's eyes that still burned with a fierce and beautiful golden hue. The next thing she knew, she and Lord Ren had moved forward and had their lips locked in a kiss.

The kiss started out slow and gentle as neither one of them had really planned for this to happen. They were both being carried along by the demands of their subconscious minds and the reactions of the other, instead of actually thinking about it.

But the kiss quickly became more passionate as they allowed the stresses of the day to be expressed and their emotions to be unleashed as they began to grip each other tightly as Kylo Ren moved his arm around Kuvira's shoulders to pull her closer to him. As well as to gain greater access to her mouth. Meanwhile Kuvira was running her hands through Kylo Ren's incredibly fine black hair as she strengthened her hold and pulled him even more forcibly into her embrace.

Kuvira shifted in her seat until she was almost straddling Kylo Ren across the pilot seat. The only think that prevented it from being complete was lack of space. Before long she had locked their mouths again as she grabbed his black robes and pulled him back to her. She ran her tongue against his teeth as she demanded entry and like any good Admiral, when he lowered his defences she struck and thrust her tongue into his mouth with full force.

Kylo Ren answered with his own demands as he moved his hands down her back until he took firm hold of her ass and pulled her even tighter to him as they both struggled to breath between their passionate embraces.

Things might have continued further if they had not both been startled apart when the TIE interceptor dropped own on the docking clamps and was locked into place within the hanger.

Kuvira and Kylo Ren sprang apart as they realised what they had done in almost full view of the First Order hanger crews. Kuvira was personally thanking the Force that it would not have been possible to see them before the TIE fighter was docked due to the angle of the ship.

She could not believe how she had acted so stupidly! She had almost allowed the entirety of the hanger bay and the fighter squadrons to see their Grand Admiral acting little better than a Zeltron whore. She had no doubt that if that had been seen it would have shattered her reputation apart in a way that would take years and many victories to recover from.

She quickly disentangled herself from Kylo Ren as she began to work the locking mechanism for the TIE fighter's hatch. Just before she opened the hatch to leave she paused and turned back to face Ren.

The Sith apprentice had not moved since they had lept apart. He was still sitting in the pilot's seat watching her as she worked the locks.

After a moment of awkward silence, she cleared her throat and tried to get her facial heat under control.

"We will discuss this later." She stated simply.

Then she opened the hatch and began her long journey to the bridge. She was just thankful that she would be able to say that the planeside battle was the reason she looked so dishevelled.

 **Authors Note**

 **Well this brings The Force Awakens almost to a close.**

 **Wow, over 10,000 words. That is my longest chapter yet. Now I am going to enjoy a strong drink to celebrate and then a long sleep.**

 **See you all next time.**


	21. Chapter 21 - Promotion and Damnation

**wildcat717: As always thank you for the review. I appreciate each one I get. I hope this confrontation is what you hoped for.**

 **Miss Luny. Thanks for the review. Yeah I wondered about adding that for a while. It didn't seem to fit with her character. But I figured even someone like Kuvira would have thoughts of a family and a child in her deepest darkest thoughts. She sees the First Order as her legacy, but she has wondered about a family. More so now with her developing relationship with Kylo Ren.**

 **TishaLiz: Thanks again for your review I appreciate each one I get. I am glad you liked the chapter so much. I have been trying to find away to allow the rebels to escape Starkiller and newly powered up Kylo Ren. I don't care for them personally I just need the story to progress. And I have been looking for a way to get Kylo Ren's and Kuvira's relationship to the next stage. Thankfully I found a solution that allowed for them both to happen at the same time while keeping enough of their skill to at least ensure they don't escape unscathed. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter as much.**

 **buzzsaw935: Thanks. I always think a touch of humour in between passionate or emotional moments somehow makes them more impactful. I hope you like this new chapter as well.**

 **Guest: Thanks for the review. We finally have the confrontation between Kuvira and Hux. I hope you enjoy the route I took.**

 **Guest: Thanks for the review. You are right Kuvira does not look fondly on cowardice. And if she leans that Phasma was the one who deactivated the shields. Well, then we just might see Cardinal avenged.**

 **Sage-Faerie of The Marsh: I am glad you have liked the story. This chapter will official bring the Force Awakens to a close and the last Jedi will be starting in the next chapters. I hope you enjoy the direction I have planned. I am glad you liked Kuvira. Like you I have often wondered how things would go if the 'bad guys' were not incompetent, overconfident or if the heroes did not have outrageous luck.**

 **bethcandy21: Thank you very much for the review. I am so glad that you enjoyed Kylo's inner conflict as well as how the battle played out. I was struggling to find a way to simultaneously advance, their relationship, cement Kylo Ren's faith in the dark side while somehow allowing the rebels to escape the planet. I think I managed that quite well. But I never had to ensure the rebels were not bloodied. One of the main points of this story is to see how the so called 'heroes' do without magic luck and plot armour. Anyway I hope you like this chapter as much.**

 **Chapter 21 – Promotion and Damnation**

 **Resurgent Class Star Destroyer - Retribution**

 **Kuvira - POV**

Kuvira marched down the hallways of the Star destroyer as she made her way from the fighter hanger to the command bridge. Her black greatcoat billowed out behind her as she moved with a pace that screamed purpose and resolve.

The troopers, officers and even the droids that occupied the hallways quickly moved to the sides of the corridors and some went so far as to press themselves against the durusteel walls to avoid her ire. The Grand Admiral looked like she was in no mood to be indulgent of any errors and they wanted to ensure they remained invisible to her for a little while.

Kuvira's hair was unkept and stay strands had escaped from her tight military braid to cascade across her face in some places. Her arms were moving stiffly, and it showed the unmistakeable sign of a bacta patch that a frantic medic had bound to her lefty arm over her blaster wound. The pain obviously must have been intense from the injury, especially as the shock and adrenaline wore off. But Kuvira showed no sign of pain as she swung her arms to match her stride. Not even the smallest wince crossed her face as she passed her subordinates.

Her clothes clearly displayed signs of battle with snow and dirt still clinging stubbornly to the fabric. In some area's there were signs of the clothes being singed from the intense heat of the lava that she had been precariously dangled over.

Her mouth was set in a firm line that looked like she was grinding her teeth together so hard, she could be creating diamonds from the pressure.

To those who looked closer, they would have also noticed that her lips appeared to be slightly redder and fuller then they typically were. It was as if they had been subjected to intense physical activity very recently.

But her eyes where the biggest hint to her fellow First Order citizens to get out of her way as fast as they could. They were blazing with purpose and with emotions that none who were not sensitive to the Force could hope to unravel. This was mainly because there were so many emotions running through Kuvira's mind right now that even she could not focus on one long enough to resolve it.

Internally Kuvira's mind was awash with thoughts and plans. But above all, they were filled with self-recriminations.

She could not believe she had allowed herself to act so foolishly in that TIE fighter! She had allowed almost allowed the entire hanger crew to see their Grand Admiral and their Dark Lord acting like a pair of horny teenagers in their parent's speeder car!

She had almost been tempted to stop by the ships medical bay in order to demand that the medical droids perform a full brain scan on her to check for any mental illness she had contracted. She was finding it hard to believe that she would have allowed herself to act in such a way without some kind of mental impairment.

But she had quickly quashed the notion and had settled on heading directly to the bridge. She was confident that once she was back in her usual command position that she would be able to put her throughs and emotions back into their usual stable and ordered state.

Besides, she would not allow whatever emotions she was feeling for Lord Ren to cloud her judgement at a time when the First Order needed her to be focused and determined to win the war. She was an Admiral, and more then that she was a Grand Admiral. And the First Order needed her to be that person. Not the hormonal, feeble minded…. whatever she had been moments before!

With that though she dismissed her doubts, self-recriminations and sexual desires and allowed her mind to settle on military matters as she stepped on to the bridge of the Retribution.

She immediately saw a number of things that drew her attention. First and foremost, where the two red armoured Praetorian guards that she had left on the ship while she went to engage in the space battle earlier. They both had their vibro-voulges out and activated, pointed squarely at their intended target.

Between them with the vibro-voulges aimed squarely at his exposed neck was General Hux. He was silent, as he tried to keep his sweating skin away from the blades of the guards. The fact that he was silent told Kuvira that he had finally realised the situation he was in and had exhausted all his attempts to cajole or threaten his way out of the situation.

When he saw Kuvira striding down the walkway he immediately opened his foolish mouth to speak. Likely it was to demand his release and that the guards be executed for daring to treat him this way. But before he could speak a word, the blades moved even closer and he clearly thought better of it.

Next she saw Commander Hask standing with his back to her in the centre of the command bridge as he watched the planet below them convulse and crack as more and more magma channels were formed in its snow-white crust below the ship. She saw that he was standing at parade rest but was clearly still favouring his uninjured leg, due to Iden's earlier stab wound.

As she was heard marching down the bridge central walkway, Hask turned around to regard her. Once he was aware of who was entering his bridge he quickly snapped to attention and saluted her. However, he was not quite able to hide the wince that the sudden movement of his injured leg created.

Kuvira gave a nod to the bridge crew as she passed them at their stations in the bridge pits and manning their posts along the command centre. They remained where they were and did not overly acknowledge the gesture. But Kuvira had learned from long experience that the bridge crews and all members of the ship appreciated a simple acknowledgment of their existence and contribution. After all, with out them performing their duties, the Star destroyer would fall out of space or crash into a star. It paid in the long run to let them know that you where aware of this and respected them for it.

Fear had its place. But respect was far less brittle. That was something neither Vader nor Palpatine ever valued. And that was why she would succeed where they failed.

As she passed by Hux without looking at him. His indignation arose within him again and he cried out. "Admiral Kuvira, I demand that you have these treasonous dogs unhand men immediately. I will make sure the Supreme Leader knows of this insubordination and has them and Commander Hask executed immediately!" He yelled in a voice that tried to sound commanding but the quiver of fear in his words was plain to hear.

Kuvira did not acknowledge or even look at the General as she passed him. She simply made a gesture to the Praetorian guards. It was one that they knew from their intense training and they did not need words to understand its meaning.

'Silence him.'

As she walked past, one of the guards delivered a two fingered knuckle jab straight into the soft flesh of Hux's neck. At the same time the second guard delivered a vicious punch to Hux's stomach. The combined attacks left the General doubled over as he gripped his stomach while struggling to draw breath.

Meanwhile she came to a stop in front of Hask. She took a moment to study Starkiller base outside the viewscreen. She could see volcano's exploding across the planet and magma channels were forming across the tectonic regions as the pressure on the planetary interior cracked and shattered the crust. Already she could see vast columns of smoke and fire billowing out into the planetary atmosphere.

Starkiller base was a cold planet at the best of times. But with the system star gone and with the atmosphere flooded with smoke and debris. The planet would likely be entering an ice age of epic severity.

Still the planet was still intact and despite the chaos reigning down on the surface. It did not seem like the planet would explode and be completely destroyed. But of course, she was only making that observation with the naked eye. A proper survey of the planet might come to a different conclusion.

But for now, it was not her priority and she turned to Hask who stood ready for her orders.

"Commander, where you able to contact the officers I requested before I left the ship?" She asked as she continued to ignore Hux entirely.

Hask nodded and made a gesture to the comms officers. Immediately they began to type in new commands to their consoles as they activated the Retribution's holographic projectors and initiated the relay connections to beam out to various places across the galaxy.

"Yes, Grand Admiral. I was able to reach all of the individuals you requested. The Supreme Leader has already been contacted and is ready to join the transmission conference as soon as you give the word." Hask reported with a directness that did not fully hide the glee which he was clearly feeling in this moment. His border line sadistic grin was directed at Hux which had the General feeling increasingly nervous.

Kuvira nodded and turned around to face directly down the bridge walkway. At the same time Hux was manhandled by the guards into the centre of the command centre directly in front of Kuvira's line of sight.

Hask moved to Kuvira's left side and was about to make a gesture to the comms officers before Kuvira raised a hand to stop him. Frowning, he turned to see what the hold was up. He then noticed that Kylo Ren was marching down the walkway to join the small assembly at the bridge viewing screens.

He watched as the Dark Lord, moved along the walkway with his trademark mask in place and completely obscuring his face as his black cloak billowed out behind him. His lightsaber was clipped to his belt and was singing prominently for all to see. As he moved down the walkway he noticed something was different about Lord Ren.

Kylo Ren had always had the ability to get the rest of the crew, even the commanders on edge. His powers in the Force were known to mirror those of his predecessor Darth Vader. That was worrying enough as Vader was infamous for performing summary executions on officers who failed him, even in the smallest of ways.

But where's Vader's anger and fury were rumoured to have been cold and direct. To be silent and focused only on the individual that was the target of his ire. Kylo Ren's fury had always been fiery and chaotic. Prone to lash out at anyone and anything that was unfortunate enough to be within his reach at the wrong time. The only benefit was that Kylo Ren typically took out his fury on random furniture and machinery then actual people. Although they were certainly not off limits to him in anyway.

Because of this Kylo Ren's entry to a room was enough to make anyone stand a little straighter. With the probable exception of the Grand Admiral.

But now. Hask could not describe it.

Kylo Ren's stride seemed to be stronger and lacking in hesitation. It was the stride of a man who was surrounded by lesser beings that could pose no more threat to him then termites. Hask was not sensitive to the Force but there was also something emanating from Kylo Ren in almost palpable waves. Something that had not been present the last time Hask had been in the Dark Lords presence.

He watched as Kylo Ren moved past Hux without any sign that he noticed the man and moved to stand on the other side of the Grand Admiral. Hux was now standing alone between the two guards facing the united triumvirate of Kuvira, Kylo Ren and Hask. All of whom were staring intensely at him.

Hux seemed to be beginning to realise just how serious his situation was as he began to noticeably perspire, and the sweat made his skin glisten beneath the extended vibroblades.

Hask glanced over at Kuvira and was rewarded by seeing her send him a nod of her head. Indicating that she was giving him the go ahead for the show he had been putting together while she was on Starkiller Base.

Hask motioned to the comms officers and at his gesture they keyed the final commands into their consoles and activated the bridge's holoprojectors.

Soon holo projections of people began to appear in the bridge command centre. They were arrayed in a semi-circle that was opposite Kuvira, Kylo Ren and Hask. Hux meanwhile was placed firmly in the centre of the group, flanked by the two guards.

As the holoimages took shape and the transmissions stabilised, Hux was able to recognise them.

There were ten figures in total displayed via hologram in the bridge. Many of them human, with seven males and three females and five on each side of the bridge walkway.

Hux immediately recognised Captain Spire, his second in command and acting captain of the Ravager. His personal Resurgent Class Star Destroyer and flagship of the 10th fleet. Though officially only a Captain. Spire had quickly risen to the rank of de-facto Admiral in the 10TH Fleet due to his skill during the Unknown Region expansion campaigns. He played a vital role of keeping First Order territories, bases and worlds out of the hands of enemy forces during the wars of conquet and in having to balance out Hux's inept leadership and tactical skills.

Once Hux made that realisation he quickly realised that eight of the other holograms were the High Admirals of the First Order. The last one was of the Minister of the First Order Security Bureau.

Admiral Mozen of the 2nd Fleet. A human male in his early forties, he was standing in his dress blacks with his blonde hair neatly combed back and his neatly styled full blond beard extended past his chin. His narrow jaw and cheeks gave him an almost gaunt look that was enhanced by the stern expression on his face as he regarded Hux with cold blue eyes. He was famous in the First Order for his championing of new and experimental weapon testing. It was his belief that a weapon or ship can always be improved on. His fascination with the legends of the weapons of the ancient Sith Empire had driven him to pursue the resurrection of those lost technologies.

Admiral Asartru of the 3rd Fleet. He was a human made and was also, in his full military uniform and in his thirties. He was more muscular then Mozen and was cleanshaven and black haired. His hair was also combed and was cut short in typical military style. His powerful looking arms were folded as he studied Hux in clear disapproval. He was originally a resident of the Outer-Rim and had borne witness the many hardships and uncertainties that his world and others had long endured. He joined the First Order in his late teens (later then most) in his determination to rule his home sector and provide stability and prosperity for his people.

Admiral Vitani of the 4th Fleet. A human female and she stood at parade rest in her standard uniform. She had pale skin and long blonde hair that framed her face and felt to just above her shoulders. Her eyes were an icy blue that stared out at the universe around them in a way not dissimilar to Kuvira's emerald orbs. She would be considered quite lovely if she was not as stern and unyielding as a black hole when the need arose. She was known for her skill in espionage and her close relationship to the First Order Security Bureau. She was famous for her ability to place spies and saboteurs on enemy worlds and fleets. She was also known to be a strong believer in taking out the enemy's leadership before attacking. Because of this, she had many allies in the FOSB and among professional bounty hunter guilds.

Admiral Kaan of the 5th Fleet. A human male and he was also in his simple black uniform as he regarded his companions with a nod of greeting and respect. He was handsome and possessed an athletic build that was similar to a dancer or acrobat. Unlike the rest of his peers. His chocolate brown hair was long and cascaded past his shoulders to the small of his back, with artful braids in select places. In addition, he cultivated a perfectly trimmed circle beard and moustache. While his appearance was clean and finely tended too, it did draw some attention in the regimented world of the First Order. It was known that it was a hang on from the culture of his planet of origin. Kaan came from a warrior culture that displayed victory and battle prowess through their hair, only cutting it upon defeat to show their shame. His hair current length spoke of a long history of victory for the 5th Fleet.

Admiral Uthemiel of the 6th Fleet. He was also bearded and blonde haired. He regarded his colleagues with a gesture of greeting and then turned to regard Hux. As he did so, his lip began to noticeably turn upward as he clearly fought to keep a smile of his face. Uthemiel was known as a man who was easy to get along with and had the respect if not friendship of most of the assembled officers. He was also known to have no patience for double talk or politicking. His opinions were worn on his sleeve and his feelings in this moment were clear. His skill lay in diplomacy and in the negotiation of new allies and peaceful surrenders. That being said he was known to use the stick if the carrot was rejected.

Admiral Zoroastra of the 7th Fleet. She was instantly unique among her colleagues in that she was not human. In fact, she was a Cathar, a feline species from an Outer-Rim planet of the same name. Her eyes were a deep ocean blue with dark pules and her fur was a mix of caramel brown along her forehead and nose, and light brown from her eyes down. In addition, she had black stripes that extended across her face in a pattern that Kuvira had always found appealing. Zoroastra had been brought into the First Order as part of Cathar's annexation agreement. As her planet's senior military commander, she had been given the rank of Commodore and her own star destroyer five years ago. Since then her assistance in the Outer-Rim expansion (and use for First Order alien propaganda) had seen her rise to the rank of Admiral. Now she regarded Hux (a known human supremacist and personal enemy) like a predator would regard a helpless prey animal. As she smiled her razor-sharp fangs were on clear display.

Admiral Kretok of the 8th Fleet. He was a human male with a styled cultivation of blonde hair. He also possessed a fine goatee on his chin accompanied with a small and well-trimmed moustache. He was a veteran of Imperial service and had been with the First Order since its foundation, while he was a young Ensign. His speciality had always been in deception and ambush tactics. This has served the 8th fleet well in their many battles in the Unknown Regions against enemies like the Grysk as they carved out their new Empire. Now he watched Hux's with a calculating expression that hinted at muted interest.

Admiral Taharni of the 9th Fleet was another non-human among their elite number. She was a Chiss and her scarlet red eyes seemed to shine against her blue skin even through the hologram. A political outcast from the Chiss Ascendancy's civil war several years ago. Taharni had been welcomed into the newly formed First Order instead of choosing a private civilian life of mediocrity in the Unknown Regions. Over the course of her training, she had often been unfairly expected to match the greatness of the legendary Grand Admiral Thrawn. While she did not possess Thrawn's talents or Kuvira's tactical skill. She had been greatly effective in ensuring peaceable and advantageous relations with many Unknown Regions and Wild Space planets and governments. It was also through her that the Ascendancy had been made an official ally of the First Order in a mutual defence pact. Though it was made clear that this did not extend to an offensive war on the Republic.

The final member of the newly assembled cabal was not an Admiral at all. But his position made him no less dangerous of deserving of respect. Minister Terex of the First Order Security Bureau was a human male who served as a stormtrooper designated TK-603 in the Galactic Empire. In the years following the Battle of Jakku, Terex became the leader of a crime syndicate on Kaddak known as the Ranc gang. Still determined to rebuild the Empire, Terex joined the First Order and later moved into their newly formed intelligence service. During the early phase of the cold war, Terex fought the Resistance starfighter pilot Poe Dameron and his Black Squadron many times and led countless missions into the Outer-Rim, all the way to Hosnian Prime. More recently he had overthrown the former minister Malarus and had taken control of the FOSB. Now with one of the galaxies most efficient and wide-ranging spy networks at his command. Terex had been welcomed into the upper echelons of power within the First Order.

Together with Admiral Kuvira of the 1st Fleet and Kylo Ren. These twelve individuals were the First Order High Command. For all intents and purposes the true political power within the First Order. There were in effect, the successors of the Imperial Moffs from the days of the Empire.

The political hierarchy in the First Order's territory was simple but effective.

Each world was overseen by a civilian governor, chosen from among the local populace. Or preferably, a local of the world that was already within the First Order. These governors had full control and responsibility over their respective worlds. They in turn were all represented in the sector council which was comprised of the governors of all the worlds within a designated region of space.

These sectors were all protected and patrolled by a full First Order fleet. These fleets were placed at the command of an Admiral and as a result the Admiral of that sector fleet was in charge of maintaining peace and stability across all their sector worlds. The governors were expected to answer and show obedience to their respective Admirals in all things. They in turn were expected to protect these worlds and ensure that their concerns were taken care of or brought to the Supreme Leader (if warranted).

Originally there had been few Admirals within the First Order when their organisation was still young and weakened by the defeat in Galactic civil war. However as more and more ships had been constructed and more and more worlds annexed. The High Command had been expanded, and with the addition of Terex for the FOSB and Kylo Ren of the Knights of Ren, now was comprised of the current twelve members.

They each controlled one of the twelve territorial sectors within the First Order and had personal command of legions of forces and vast resources, making the High Command the most powerful individuals in their Empire below the Supreme Leader himself.

And speak of the Dark Side. In the space over the bridge walkway, between the five assembled holograms on each side. The giant image of Supreme Leader Snokes head flashed into view.

Snoke was once again being depicted in a larger then life image between the life size holograms of his Admiral's and Minster of Intelligence. Now the giant, scarred and ancient face of the Supreme Leader was dominating the bridge of the Retribution like a visitation of a god.

As he appeared, Kuvira, Kylo Ren, Hask, the holograms of the High Command and all the bridge crew stood at attention and bowed at the waist in the expected gesture of obedience.

Snoke made no acknowledgement of the gesture and instead simply stared with clear disfavour at General Hux who was forced to his feet and made to bow deeply by the Praetorian guards. When the guards let him raise his head again, he stared at the Supreme Leader and the assembled High Command.

His eyes darted from the Supreme Leader, to Admiral Mozen, to Minister Terex, to Admiral Taharni and on and one until he restarted the process. He was clearly desperately searching for some way to get out of this situation, some means of escape. He was perspiring heavily even though the controlled temperature in the Star Destroyer's bridge was set very comfortably.

His breathing was ragged and harsh as he greedily gulped in air only to demand more as his lungs were unable to work properly in their panicked state.

Kuvira watched all this with cool enjoyment. She kept her face neutral and devoid of any semblance of emotion. Openly gloating in front of the entire First Order government was beneath her and beneath her distinguished colleagues.

However, beneath her stoicism she was practically dancing with joy. Finally, she would be able to witness the cancerous infectious tumour that was General Armitage Hux be cut out of the First Order. She would get to watch him receive the just punishments for his idiocy and arrogance. She would get to watch as the First Order did what it was founded to do. Destroy the weak and the unworthy, so the strong can rule, and the many can flourish.

"General Hux." The voice of the Supreme Leader rang out across the bridge as Kuvira came back to herself.

Hux in turn shook free of the guards and straightened up as he tried to look dignified despite the fear that was still etched on to his face. "Ah Supreme Leader, I was just…. URK!" Hux squeaked in surprise as he was suddenly pulled to the floor by an immensely powerful invisible force. His chin slammed into the durusteel floor of the bridge first and left his brain rattled and his mouth filling with blood.

The Supreme Leader had mode no motion. But all the assembled people knew he was responsible for that little display of power and discipline.

"My disappointment in your performance cannot be overstated." The Supreme Leader continued as he regarded the bloodied General as he struggled to get to his feet.

"Supreme Leader, I.." Hux began but at a gesture from Snoke, the two guards seized him again and placed their blades back at his neck. Clearly telling him to remain silent.

Snoke turned from Hux to address Kuvira directly. "Admiral Kuvira. Your report on the situation on Starkiller Base." Snoke said expectantly.

Kuvira bowed once again and took a step forward as the assembled High Command turned their eyes to her. "The battle on Starkiller has been finished Supreme Leader. The Resistance attacked the planet with a number of fighter squadrons from their base originating in the Ileenium system. They were engaged by our ground defences and by our TIE fighters from the planetary defence forces. This resulted in a prolonged battle as they attacked the Oscillator in an attempt to disable and destroy the Starkiller weapon." She reported.

Admiral Mozen raised a question. "Admiral Kuvira. How was the Resistance able to get that close to the Oscillator in the first place? I was under the impression that the 1st Fleet would be placed in a planetary defence blockade." He asked curiously.

Kuvira nodded. "Correct Admiral. I left the 1st Fleet in defence formation around Starkiller before I left for Vados to meet Commander Hask an resolve the matter of the Resistance agents interfering with Operation Resurrection."

Terex spoke up. "And in the process eliminated the infamous Iden Versio and her daughter. And sent the Resistance agent Shriv Suurgav to the FOSB for interrogation. I would like to offer my personal gratitude for these actions Admiral." He complimented sincerely.

Kuvira nodded in recognition and continued with her report. "Once I returned from Vados I was informed that the Resistance was attacking the base and that the 1st Fleet had been disbanded across multiple systems. Under General Hux's orders." She finished as she made her point kyber crystal clear.

The assembled parties looked down at Hux as he seemed to visibly wilt under their collective gaze.

Kuvira continued. "Once I arrived back in the Starkiller system on the Retribution. I organised our TIE fighters to join in the battle and take down the Resistance fighters before they could achieve any significant damage to the Oscillator while the weapon charged to fire. This was successful and we were able to drive them into the upper atmosphere."

"However, at that point it became clear that Resistance agents had somehow managed to slip through our defences and land several operatives on the planet surface. These agents consisted of Han Solo, the Wookie Chewbacca, a former stormtrooper traitor and a prisoner from the newly annexed planet Jakku."

At the mention of Han Solo and Chewbacca the embers of the High Command noticeably perked up as they became keenly interested in the situation.

Admiral Zoroastra spoke up next. "How did the Resistance manage to land on the planet without anyone being alerted about it. The planetary shield alone should have secured Starkiller base from that." She asked as she tried to keep the growl from her words as her temper flared slightly.

Commander Hask stepped forward to answer that one. "It is currently unclear how, Admiral. But the shield was disabled before the Resistance attack and it is unknown how Han Solo got on the planet. Captain Phasma is currently looking into the matter, as she departed the planet recently after reporting she was in pursuit of the culprit."

Zoroastra nodded as she accepted that answer. But neither she nor anyone else noticed Kuvira's eyes narrow at the mention of Phasma's mission.

After a moments silence to allow for additional questions, Kuvira continued. "Once on the planet the Resistance agents were able to plant explosives in the interior of the Oscillator and these allowed for a breach in the facility to be opened. With the external defences breached the remaining Resistance fighters were able to directly attack the interior of the Oscillator and create massive damage to the containment systems."

"It was at this moment while I was commanding the battle from my TIE interceptor I recognised that the planet was in danger of being destroyed by the containment field failing with the weapon fully charged to fire. With that in mind I ordered the weapon to be discharged immediately to reduce the energy that would be unleashed if the containment failed and then ordered all remaining personnel to evacuate the planet. I also resolved to personally confront the saboteurs so I landed my TIE fighter outside the Oscillator." She summarised.

Kylo Ren took a step forward and moved to take over the conversation.

As he moved to stand next to Kuvira their shoulders brushed up against each other in a way that neither of them believed was accidental. Kuvira once again envied Kylo Ren's mask as she used all her mental discipline to keep her expression neutral and her facial heat normal. Even as she felt a powerful emotional spike radiate through her entire body at the contact.

She mentally chided herself for her idiocy and lack of control. As she did so, she was forced to acknowledge that she and Lord Ren would have to discuss their 'relationship' sooner rather than later.

Kylo Ren addressed the assembled High Command and his master. "I was able to track the Resistance scum to the forest just outside the Oscillator chamber. Han Solo and the Wookie made a run for their ship while the traitor and the Jakku peasant attempted to stall me. The traitor was swiftly dealt with and subjected to punishment for his desertion and betrayal." He said with a noticeable amount of satisfaction in his synthesised voice.

"However, a complication rose when the Jakku girl was revealed to be Force sensitive and somewhat skilled in the use of the Force. She was able to call a lightsaber into her hand and attempted to kill me in a duel." He paused as if to privately laugh at the ludicrous behaviour she had displayed.

"I taught her the folly of her hubris and it was at her defeat that the Admiral arrived. Unfortunately, she was able to use the Force to endanger the Admiral's life and in the process I was able to save her while unfortunately they used the distraction to escape. However, the Wookie Chewbacca took serious wounds and a vibroknife to the eye. There is a good chance that the wound will prove fatal." Kylo Ren finished his report as his master nodded approvingly.

Snoke was pleased that Kylo Ren had the foresight to save the life of the First Order's military leader and greatest tactical mind. It was these actions that separated him from the many fools that came before him. Those who believed that simply being able to command the dark side made them true masters of the Force. Those who killed for no reason or purpose beyond their feeble twisted desires. They were not true Sith Lords, they were nothing more than sadistic fools.

Snoke was perfectly willing to kill personally and to order countless deaths. But always with purpose. Always with greater goals in mind. The fact that Kylo Ren had been willing to put aside his personal vendetta against Han Solo to save the life of someone truly valuable to the First Order was a sign that his apprentice had taken these lessons to heart.

In addition, he could sense that his apprentice's power had grown substantially since his last meeting with him. As he reached out and sensed the mind of Kylo Ren. He was pleased to find that the endlessly conflicting mixtures of light and dark that had so often roiled within his apprentice, were gone.

In its place was an impressive calm and an enhanced focus that was channelling the dark side though his body as never before.

It seemed as if Kylo Ren had finally found himself.

He searched deeper within his apprentice as he carefully searched for any lingering doubts or weaknesses that might still be clinging stubbornly to the young man. But there was nothing like that to be found in his apprentice's spirit.

It was then that Snoke noticed something. Some intense source of power and resolve that burned within his apprentice like a generator. Whatever it was, it had not been their recently. And it was allowing Kylo Ren to tab into the Force with greater intensity then Snoke had dared to hope.

Kylo Ren's new mental and spiritual defences around this source of strength were formidable, even for Snoke. But the Supreme Leader was still stronger and more experienced. Soon enough he was able to pierce the veil that Kylo Ren had wrapped around this new presence within himself. What he found was interesting to say the very least.

Snoke withdrew from the Force and came back to the physical world displayed in the holo-projection. And as he did so he paid closer attention to the way that Kylo Ren and Admiral Kuvira were standing next to each other. He studied their body language and the ease with which they stood. He briefly reached out with the Force again to confirm what he already suspected.

He would need to think about this new development more thoroughly to determine his course of action.

For now, this current matter needed to be resolved. Later he would devote more thought to the issue of his apprentice and his Admiral.

Kuvira stepped forward once more. "As it stands while the planet remains intact, it is undergoing immense tectonic and geothermic activity. The weapon's premature discharge allowed the energy output to be reduced enough to prevent the quintessence from creating a new star or a singularity. Unfortunately, all reports indicate that the beam dissipated before it could reach the Ileenium system." Kuvira said ruefully as the High Command members grimaced at the lost opportunity to destroy the main Resistance base and bring this war that much closer to total victory.

"In addition, despite the planets current survival there is no guarantee that this will remain the case. The planet might continue to destabilise if the core's equilibrium has been terminally damaged. Even if this is does not happen the planet will be undergoing an immense negative environmental change as ash and choke the atmosphere. This does not even account for the absence of the systems star."

She paused before she came to her conclusion. "In layman's terms. The planetary weapon is damaged and inoperable. There is a chance that if the planet survives we can investigate further to see if we can repair it. But this will be complicated because the planet's ability to support humanoid life will be severely…strained." She finished.

At this Admiral Vitani spoke up. "So Starkiller base is lost to us. At least for the foreseeable future." She asked for confirmation. At Kuvira's nod she turned her gaze to Hux. "And the General is the one responsible for this loss?" She asked in tone that was more of a statement then a question.

Kuvira turned her gaze down to the General who was beginning to tremble in the grip of the Praetorian guards. Her eyes were as hard an unyielding as cortosis as she gave her verdict.

"Inescapably." She stated.

The Supreme Leader regarded Hux with clear distain. The Supreme Leader had always refused Kuvira's unsubtle requests to get rid of Hux in the past. He understood her concerns, but he had maintained that Hux had is uses and that keeping him on the leash was preferable then simply dispatching him.

Now, he was forced to concede that he may have been mistaken.

"Do you have anything to say in your defence, General?" Snoke demanded.

Hux seized the opportunity and tore himself free from the guards. They released him but they stayed close and kept their vibro-voulges activated and ready.

"Supreme Leader. I sent the 1st fleet away from the planet because I was concerned that they might be endangered by the weapon firing. I sent them away to fulfil their assigned tasks for the war effort. As to how the Resistance agents made it to the planet. That fault rests with our security forces. I am not responsible for the failure of the defences of Starkiller." He proclaimed.

He then turned his eyes behind him to look at Kuvira as his mind took hold of a way he could turn this accusation around. "If anything, the fault rests with the commander of the TIE fighters who allowed the Resistance fighters to breach the Oscillator defences and then escape the system." He accused with a small sneer creeping into her voice.

Kuvira remained unperturbed and clearly unimpressed as she regarded him in his desperate attempt to shift blame.

"I must disagree with your assessment General." She said with barely concealed sarcasm on the last word.

"The 1st fleet was in no danger from the weapon firing as had already been established by scientific studies and actual empirical evidence as the flee was in position around the planet when the weapon was fired at Hosnian Prime. As to your claim of contributing to the war. The 1st fleets assigned task was to protect Starkiller in the aftermath of the attack on Hosnian Prime to prevent exactly what has happened from occurring." She stated as her voice dropped back down to a controlled volume as it had begun to rise as she finished her retort.

"As to responsibility. When I departed to Vados I left you in charge of the defence of Starkiller base. The failure of the entire defence and the failure to notice infiltration is your failure. But this all is nullified by the fact that the Resistance fighters would never have made it to the surface if the 1st fleet had been in its previous position. The position you ordered them to abandon. So that you could claim your precious glory for destroying the Resistance alone." She finished unable to keep the distain out of her voice.

Hux opened his mouth as he tried to refute the arguments. But before he could speak his throat closed off and he found himself falling back to the ground as he desperately tried to pry the invisible force off his neck.

The room turned to face Kylo Ren who had his hand held out with his thumb and forefinger pinched together. "I have had enough or your lies and your pathetic attempts to shift blame General Hux." Kylo Ren growled through his mask.

Snoke nodded approvingly at his apprentice. "As have I."

He turned to Hux who was still gasping on the floor. "General Hux. It is clear that through your arrogance and stupidity. You have cost the First Order Starkiller base and you have ensured that this war will be more difficult without its power." He spoke softly but with clear menace in his words.

Hux was allowed to breathe to prevent him dying too soon. But Kylo used the force to keep him pressed down on his knees.

Snoke continued. "However, I will not carry out your punishment myself. Instead I give that task to Admiral Kuvira." He said as he turned to regard Kuvira.

Kuvira bowed slightly in gratitude. Then she turned towards Hux as she prepared to deliver her verdict. But before she could speak she was interrupted by the Supreme Leader. "However, this presents a problem. An Admiral cannot pass judgement on a General or an officer of equal rank. To correct this, I intend to officially recognise what is already a reality."

The Supreme Leader regarded Kuvira for a few seconds before he issued his proclamation. "Therefore, I officially grant Admiral Kuvira the rank of Grand Admiral. The first Grand Admiral in the history of the First Order. As of now all sector Admiral's will be answerable to her and her authority is second only to that of the Supreme Leader.

Kuvira and the rest of the assembly were silent for a moment.

Officially this was something special. This was Kuvira being given the rank of Grand Admiral. The highest military rank in the entire First Order. This was her being recognised as the official second in command of the First Order and overseer over all their sectors and every world that they ruled. It also ensured that the High Command council now had an official head that could dictate policy and ensure coordination across the galaxy.

Officially this was an auspicious moment indeed.

In reality, however. Kuvira already had that authority. She had been recognised as the de-facto head of the military for years. She was even already referred to as Grand Admiral so often that she had long ago stopped any attempts to correct the misunderstanding.

Only those like Hux had ever tried to remind her of the reality of her rank. But now it seemed that due to Hux's actions. That would no longer be a problem. There was some irony here that she could certainly appreciate.

The reminder of Hux snapped her out of her reverie and she bowed low to the Supreme Leader in gratitude for the promotion. (However needless it might have been.)

"Thank you, Supreme Leader." She said as she rose to stand up straight again. "I will make every effort to validate your confidence in me."

Snoke nodded. "Congratulations, Grand Admiral." He said and as he did so. The assembled Admiral's holograms, the bridge crew and Commander Hask all saluted as one.

"Grand Admiral Kuvira!" They shouted in acknowledgment as they saluted their superior officer.

Kylo Ren did not salute or bow as he held a strange unofficial rank within the First Order. He also did not bow or kneel to anyone except his master. But he dipped his head in acknowledgement to Kuvira. He also subtly reached out to her with the force. Just a light presence to make her aware that he was glad for her achievement.

Kuvira nodded and then turned her attention back to Hux. The general had made no move or gesture at the announcement. But now he was staring at the newly official Grand Admiral with an expression that was not fear, or hate, or despair but instead some strange combination of all three.

Kuvira saw that expression and despite her best efforts. She found herself savouring it.

"General Armitage Hux. For the crimes committed against the First Order through your arrogance, stupidity and your sheer incompetence. I find you guilty on all of these counts and by my authority as Grand Admiral. I hereby sentence you to…. "She paused as she allowed the wait of her words to sink in.

The entire bridge was quiet as a tomb as everyone waited with bated breath to hear what Hux's fate would be. None more so then Hux, who looked like he was about to suffer a stroke.

Kuvira let him suffer for a bit before she delivered her sentence. "…..garrison duty."

The room remained in silence as the bridge crew and officers took in what had just been said.

'Garrison duty?!'

That punishment was typically issued to officers who had failed to make the necessary requirements to serve on ships. It was occasionally used as a punishment when officers had failed or disgraced themselves somehow. Or if they had made an enemy of a vindictive superior. It was typically seen as way to ensure they could dwell in obscurity and cause no more trouble.

It was unpleasant and defiantly not beneficial to a career. But it was hardly the punishment that the assembled mass had expected to be issued for the crime of carelessly losing Starkiller base. If that crime did not warrant execution then what did?!

Hux's eyes went wide with surprise. Then they instantly narrowed in suspicion.

Kuvira did not wait long before she directed her attention to the guards and to Hask. "Seize the general and escort him to the escape pods. Ensure he is given amble provisions and some winter clothes. Then launch the pod back down to Starkiller base." She said in a tone that betrayed no joy or sorrow or glee at what she was ordering. That time had passed and now it was time to simply being practical.

Hux took a moment to catch on to what she was saying. When he did he tried to leap to his feet, but the guards held him fast and dragged him up as Hask began issuing commands to the bridge crew to get the necessary supplies organised and delivered to the escape pods.

"What! You just said that Starkiller will be rendered uninhabitable! You cannot do this!" He shouted.

Kuvira regarded him with her standard stoic gaze as her green eyes narrowed slightly. "I never said the planet would be uninhabitable, General. I merely said that the planet's ability to support humanoid life will be severely strained." She said slowly as if explaining to an insolent child.

"The planet will still be liveable if not hospitable." She said before adding. "Assuming of course that the core does not destabilise entirely. In which case the planet will explode." She said with some sardonic humour creeping into her voice.

The Admiral's holograms still displayed in the room all smirked knowingly as Kuvira's chosen punishment began to become clear.

"In addition. Before I left for Vados, I left you in charge of the defence of Starkiller base and I do not recall relieving you of that duty." She said. "Besides, General this is not a permeant arrangement. We simply need someone to maintain a First Order presence on Starkiller to monitor the situation and the status of the weapon. Once it is clear that the planet will survive the cataclysm. We will return to look into resettling the planet. You may return to your duties at that time."

She turned to face Commander Hask. "Commander, when do the preliminary reports indicate that time will be?" She asked nonchalantly.

Hask grinned savagely as he responded. "The reports indicate that if the planet survives the equilibrium should stabilise in ten to twenty years. Thirty years at most. Grand Admiral." He stated with the air of one commenting on the weather.

Kuvira nodded and turned back to Hux who was growing worryingly pale as the words began to sink in. "Very well General. For the next twenty to thirty years. Consider yourself relived of your current military duties. Instead I name you as acting governor of Starkiller Base. However, if you are able to repair the super weapon and get it activated by yourself. We will look into reducing the tenure of your governorship."

She had said all she felt inclined to say and waved at the guards to take Hux away to the escape pods. "Goodbye Governor. I hope your new constituents receive your warmly."

She then turned to the hologram of Captain Spire. "Captain Spire. The Supreme leader talked earlier about making reality official. I agree with his example. As of now you will assume full and permanent responsibility for the 10th fleet and the defence of our home systems. You are in command now Admiral Spire." She finished with finality.

The newly made Admiral Spire, saluted and nodded in gratitude. "Thank you Grand Admiral. I will endeavour to live up to your trust in me."

Meanwhile Hux being dragged off the bridge past the holograms and through the ranks of the bridge crew. His shouts of anger and his oaths of vengeance were lost in the mad cacophony of his words and screams. As he was dragged of the bridge the holograms of the High Command faded away as they each returned to their assigned duties.

However, the Supreme Leader lingered for a moment.

"Congratulations, Grand Admiral. I trust I can rely on you to conduct the next phase of the war with your typical dedication and resolve?" Snoke stated rather then asked.

Kuvira nodded and entered her typical stance with her feet spread and her hands clasped behind her back. "Yes, Supreme Leader. In fact, our scouts monitoring stations have managed to trace the flight path of the Resistance. It seemed that they were so concerned with leaving the system before the planet exploded that they neglected to cove their tracks. Combined with the data we gathered from their recon ship. We have confirmed that the Resistance base is located in the D'Qar system. I have already ordered for the entire 1st fleet to reassemble and travel to D'Qar with all haste. I have no doubt the Resistance will be evacuating soon, and I do not intend to let them escape." Kuvira reported as she began to compile her strategy for the battle over D'Qar if the Resistance fleet was still there.

Snoke nodded approvingly. Then he turned back to Kylo Ren "My Apprentice. I can sense your power and it pleases me greatly. I can see that you have exorcised your doubts and weaknesses. And now stand before me as a worthy successor to Darth Vader." He said, knowing how much Kylo had yearned for such praise.

"Now that you have faced and conquered your own weaknesses. It is time to complete your training. Return to me onboard the Supremacy. And together we will fully awaken the power of the Dark Side within you. Once this is done. You will go on to do what even Lord Vader never could. The complete and utter eradication of the Jedi Order." Snoke said as his voice resonated with the unfathomable power of the dark side.

Kylo Ren was instantly ecstatic about his master's praise. The chance to learn the greatest secrets of the dark side. To ascend higher then even his grandfather ever had. To take the front role in his mission to enforce peace, freedom, justice and security to the new galactic order.

When he returned to his master's side he would begin to unlock his true potential. He had already gained more power then he had ever thought possible on Starkiller base. But now he was being offered power the likes of which mortal minds could not comprehend.

He was excited to depart and to begin his training.

But then his excitement abated, and he subtly glanced in Kuvira's direction through the eyes of his mask.

Her face was impassive, and she gave no indication whatsoever that she had even heard the Supreme Leaders command. To mundane people she appeared to be in complete and utter control. She radiated poise and military discipline in this moment.

However, as he reached out with the Force he was able to see beneath the mental shields that she had thrown up. With those breached, he was able see what she was truly feeling.

At first he felt relief coursing through her. After a shocked moment he realised that the source of the relief was that she would not be forced to openly talk to him about certain recent events or the feelings about them. Feelings that she was still struggling to understand herself and things that she was not able to logically analyse like everything else in her life. She was not ready to openly discuss these things nor was she ready to trust herself to do so properly.

However beneath that he felt shame and anger at what she perceived as cowardice. The fact that she was scared to face, whatever this was between them, discussed her. She felt that she, a Grand Admiral of the First Order should not be fleeing from the situation like a frightened animal.

And beneath that she found her deepest feelings on the situation. He felt sadness and longing. Sadness that she would not be able to properly talk with him about their relationship in this moment. She was sad that she might have to wait weeks or possibly much longer until he returned from his training with the Supreme Leader. That she might not get the chance to really talk with him before so much time past that it became irrelevant.

The longing was simpler to interpret. She wanted more time with him. More time to discuss what they had done in the cockpit of that TIE fighter. More time to maybe try it again and see what happened. Maybe to what happened if they were able to avoid being interrupted. Her quarters were very secure if she wanted them to be.

Kylo quickly withdrew the force probe. These thoughts were hers and he would not disrespect her by delving into her personal thoughts without her being aware of it. Besides, he was finding it hard to maintain is own neutrality in the Force. If he continued to feed off Kuvira's emotions in combination with his own. His master would certainly sense the passions within him.

If he had not already.

He snapped back to himself as he bowed before his master. "I understand master. I will depart within the hour." He said as he kept his head lowered before the giant hologram of Snoke.

Snoke offered a small smile which had a sinister look to it. Though that might simply have been the result of his scared face. He regarded his apprentice, then the Grand Admiral as they stood side by side. Then he returned his gaze to both of them.

"This is a historic day my friends. The New Republic has been decapitated, and the Resistance is helpless before our power. The galaxy is ours to grasp. Let us reach."

With that, the hologram of the Supreme Leader fade and the Retribution's bridge was left with just Kuvira, Kylo Ren, Hask and the bridge crew.

For a moment no one spoke. Then Kuvira turned to Kylo Ren. "I will walk with you to the hanger Lord Ren. You will need to return to the Supremacy, and I will need to return to the Reclaimer to begin the attack on D'Qar." She turned to face Hask who was still standing behind them. "Commander the ship is yours. I trust you to destroy all remaining ships and transports on Starkiller's surface. I don't want Hux's punishment to be reduced. I also trust you understand your campaign orders?"

At Hask's affirmative she eyes his injuries. "I would recommend you get your injuries seen to Commander. The First Order needs you in good form for the war."

Hask nodded as he felt the pain in his leg and face flare up as he was reminded of them. "I will Grand Admiral. Have a pleasant journey and good luck to you in the battles to come." Hask said respectfully.

Kuvira nodded in return. "And to you, Commander."

With that, Kuvira and Kylo Ren both left the bridge and made their way from the bridge to the hanger that contained the upsilon-class command shuttles that would take both of them to their destinations.

They did not have the opportunity to talk during the journey as they were constantly surrounded by other personnel moving through the ship to carry out their assigned tasks. Or they were forced to share lifts and corridors with assigned guards and stormtrooper patrols.

By the time they reached the hangers and beheld their upsilon shuttles the silence had grown uncomfortable. As they entered the hanger they noticed another command shuttle entering the hanger and beginning to settle down on the hanger floor.

Kylo Ren stepped up to a shuttle and ordered the crew to begin preparations for launch. Once they headed into the ship to contact hanger flight control. He turned back to face the Grand Admiral.

For a moment they simple stared at each other. Neither knowing quite what to say. Then again neither of them had any experience in these matters.

In his previous life Kylo Ren had been in Jedi training and had been taught to detach himself from emotional bonds. Naturally there had been no time for relationships during that time. And even less reason for it once he turned his back on the Jedi and pledged himself to the Dark Side.

In Kuvira's case her first and only love had been the First Order. Since the time that she could hold a blaster she had focused on only one goal. To ensure the survival, prosperity and eventual victory of the First Order. Compared to that, things like personal wants came in second. And romantic entanglements a very distant third. Until now at least.

As the stared for what began to become a noticeable period of time. Kylo Ren moved his hands up to his face. Before he suddenly let them fall back to his sides.

Kuvira sensed that he had been about to take off his mask so they could talk properly. But had decided against in such a crowded hanger. It made sense to her. He needed to maintain the sense that he was more then a mere man in the minds of their First Order soldiers. Showing his face behind his mask would damage that perception.

Still just because it made sense to her. Didn't mean she did not feel a ripple of disappointment course through her.

Finally, Kylo Ren broke the silence. "I will be returning as soon as I am able Grand Admiral. I am eager to re-join you in the hunt for the Resistance." He said

Kuvira nodded, all business and military image. "I am glad to hear it Lord Ren. When the Resistance is on the back foot they will inevitably turn to Skywalker to save them from their end. When that day comes I would feel a great deal more secure with you by my side." She said in a tone of voice that betrayed nothing.

They resumed their awkward silence a moment longer until the shuttle crew announced that they were ready to depart. Kylo Ren dismissed them and turned back to Kuvira.

Kuvira resolved to stop making a spectacle of herself. She inhaled and squared her shoulders as she reaffirmed her iron will. "Safe travels to you Lord Ren. I will await your return with great anticipation." She said as she gave a small bow of respect.

Kylo Ren nodded in turn and began to make his way up the ramp into the shuttle. Just before he vanished from sight behind the ascending ramp he turned back around and spoke a final farewell. "Be safe, Kuvira."

Kuvira's did not fail to notice what Kylo Ren had done. But before she could respond (if she had intended too) the ramp closed, and she was forced to stand aside as the upsilon shuttle lifted off and exited the star destroyer's hanger. Before long it was out of sight.

Kuvira stood still as she tried to muddle through the situation. But she resolved that she would not be any aid to anyone standing around like a paralysed neek. Instead she began to compose herself as she re-styled her hair into its typical bun and ensured that her image was one of strength if not perfection.

She turned to begin making her way to her own shuttle. Nephitina was already aboard and all preparations were ready for her to travel back to the Reclaimer. From there it would be a quick rendezvous with the rest of the 1st Fleet and then on to D'Qar.

As she began to make her way over she noticed a trio of people approaching her. They had clearly exited from the newly arrived upsilon shuttle.

She turned to study them. One was easily recognisable from his golden stormtrooper armour. Commander Pyre. It seemed he had returned from his mission to Castillon sooner then expected.

The next was a human female with black hair, brown eyes, and dark skin. She recognised her from her dealings with Minister Terex and the First Order Security Bureau; Agent Tierny. One of the FOSB's top agents. A master manipulator who shared Kuvira's dream to restore peace to the galaxy through absolute order.

But the third member of the trio was one that Kuvira did not recognise. A young human female with black hair, brown eyes and dark skin. She was wearing worn in and slightly dirty brown clothes that seemed to fit the mould of a mechanic. The jacket that she was wearing even had the image of a hydro spanner on the emblem. She was walking slightly behind the other two and despite her clear nervousness she was staring around at the hanger in complete awe. Clearly she had never been in such an advanced and well-furnished hanger before. But that did beg the question of what she was doing here.

She set her musings aside as the trio came to a stop in front of her. Commander Pyre and Agent Tierny both saluted smartly and in perfect unison. This seemed to stun the young woman behind them who offered a hasty bow. "Grand Admiral!" They uttered.

Kuvira nodded to them in greeting. "Commander Pyre, Agent Tierny. I am surprised to see you both back so soon. I understood that your mission on Castilon was intended to bring stability to the planet and ensure it was freed from pirates and supposed Resistance agents." She inquired.

Commander Pyre and Agent Tierny glanced at each other before they made their report. "I am afraid complications arose on Castilon. The Resistance agents made an alliance with the sector pirates and were able to flee their crimes onboard the activated Colossus space platform." Tierny reported gravely.

Kuvira was silent as she considered this. Then she responded with a small sigh. "That is unfortunate. Though I cannot say I am surprised that Resistance terrorists found common cause with pirates and marauders. They are cut from the same cloth in most regards after all." She said as she noticed the young woman's eyes and muscles tense in anger at the mention of the Resistance terrorists.

"Nevertheless, what is the state of the planet. Is it secure?" She asked.

Commander Pyre took over. "Yes, Grand Admiral. The planet is free of both the Resistance and the pirates. The star destroyer Fortitude has taken up position in orbit and all remaining civilians on the planet have accepted the annexation peacefully. However, I am sorry to report that Major Vonreg did not survive the battle. He was killed during the battle in an ambush by the Resistance scum Kazuda Xiono." He snarled as she spoke the name.

Kuvira lowered her gaze at that news. Major Vonreg was a skilled pilot whose abilities were acknowledged by both her and their enemies. The major could engage multiple opponents, such as a squadron of starfighters, without the support of wing mates. He was also one of the few pilots capable of engaging both Kuvira and Dameron in a dogfight for a time. His loss was a heavy blow to the First Order Navy.

She nodded as she was forced to accept Vonreg's loss. "At least the planet is secure, and we now have an unbroken supply line to ensure all our forces and worlds are properly secured and well supplied. For now, we can call that a victory. Even if it was bought at a higher price then we imagined."

She tilted her head to get a better look at the woman who was practically hiding behind Tierny. "Now would you be so kind as to introduce me to your companion?"

Pyre and Tierny stepped to the side to allow Kuvira to stand face to face with the young woman. The woman was clearly nervous but to her credit she did not back away or break eye contact.

Tierny made the necessary introductions. "This woman was part of the mechanics team that the Resistance agents had established their cover. However, she was unaware of their true identity or the extent of their treachery as they used her to increase their forged identities. Once she was enlightened about who her so called friends really where. She was very helpful in our efforts to bring them to justice. As time progressed I noticed that she has a number of admirable qualities and is a skilled pilot and racer. I offered her a place in the First Order navy as a pilot. I think she will make an excellent addition to our forces and overtime, could possibly live up to the example set by Major Vonreg."

Kuvira raised an eyebrow at that bold statement. She regarded the woman with new interest. "That is certainly high praise my young friend. Can you please tell me your name?"

The woman swallowed and stood up a little straighter. "Yes, Grand Admiral. My name is Tamara Ryvora.

 **Hux - POV**

A great impact jostles the escape pod as it comes crashing down into the frozen hard ground of Starkiller Base. Then with a series of thunderous crashes that come close to shattering every bone in Hux's body. The pod finally seems to slow down as the metal stops bouncing and instead starts to screech its way along the snow and earth as it finally settles to a stop in the middle of the frozen wasteland as the blizzard blows past it and black storm clouds build on every visible horizon.

After a few minutes. The escape pod bust open and former General Hux scrambled out of the metal shell that he had been thrown in by those red plated goons.

Hux stuck his head into the cold snowstorm and almost immediately retracted his body back into the still warm (but rabidly cooling) escape pod. But as the weather began to grow colder and his pods life support systems began to fail he was forced to grab his supplies and rations and get out of the pod.

He misjudged the descent from the pod and ended up falling face first into the snowbank that had formed at the base of the pod.

With his mouth spitting snow and ice from his lips and murder in his eyes. Hux rose to his feet and stared around him at the bleak and empty planet around him. Even now he could see lava clouds in the sky and lightning flashing in the atmosphere as the planet continued to quake violently. He looked in each and every direction. Trees to the north. Mountains to the east. Storms to the west and south. Almost certain death in every direction he could see.

Hux's face continued to grow redder despite the fierce cold as his constant anger and rage manifested itself to heights he had never even dreamed possible. He opened his mouth and began to scream and bellow in rage and hate as the storm seemed to worsen, as if in response to his rage. He fell to his knees and slammed his hands and fists into the snow-covered ground again and again and again. Even when his hand became bloody on the ground and ice shards. Hux did not even feel it. He was too lost in his red haze to notice the blood trickling down his fingers and onto the snow.

Hux's already fragile grip on his rationality continued to fray as his screams of rage became bestial howls of primal fury. His movements and rages were less like those of a man and more of a wild beast. An animal trapped in a cage he had virtually no hope of escape.

All of his polish, military bearing and arrogance disappeared as he developed into little more then a screaming mad man as his mind conjured images from his past and present to torment him along with the planet.

He saw the image of his brutish thug of a father; Brendol Hux, laughing at him as he beat him like he had done in his childhood. He saw images Kylo Ren walking away from him as he dismissed him as a non-entity.

Finally, he saw the face of Kuvira regarding him with mocking derision, and he once again screamed in rage as the sound of mocking laughter echoed louder and louder in his head. Just like the sounds of his rage echoed across the now barren empty planet.

With not a soul to hear them.

 **Authors Note**

 **Well that is it.**

 **Over 12,000 words for this chapter. That is quite possibly the longest thing I have written outside of my university dissertation.**

 **This chapter officially brings the Force Awakens to a close. I will be taking a break before getting back with new chapters for the Last Jedi.**

 **It won't be too long. A month or so but it will be a break to consider where the story goes from here. Once again any suggestions are welcome via reviews.**

 **Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this new chapter.**

 **See you all soon.**


	22. Chapter 22 - Preparation

**Guest: Thanks for the review. I am glad you like my method of dealing with Hux. I personally felt that these kinds of punishments are much more interesting than simple execution. Whether or not he will return is up for debate at the moment.**

 **Setress: Thanks for the review as always. I hope you enjoy the upcoming chapters for the Last Jedi. I really enjoyed the movie, but I agree many things can be changed without 'plot armour'. I am glad you liked that I have brought Tam into the story. With her being one of the first main characters to join the First Order I can do a lot with her character. I just hope we see her in a new season of Resistance soon.**

 **TishaLiz: As always thank you for the reviews. They are greatly appreciated. I am glad you liked the mock trail for Hux and the other Admirals. I wanted to give the impression that the First Order is larger than the main guys we see in the movies (which it is). I also wanted to add a bit of theatricality to the trail as it was an opportunity for Kuvira to make it clear that there was no escape for traitors no matter their ranks.**

 **I agree that Kylo Ren and Kuvira should have had some time together to discuss what has developed between them. But Snoke's orders came to recall Kylo Ren back to the Supremacy as he wants to study and contain this before he knows what to do with it. Also, I honestly think that Kuvira and Kylo Ren would take any chance they had to escape from this. They are simply not sure what the hell happened or how to even proceed. It flies in the face of everything they have ever known or been taught. With that in mind they did not put up much of a fight to gain some time to think and get back to what they know.**

 **Still, they will need to confront this soon. I hope you enjoy.**

 **Scarlettsky: Thanks for the review. I am glad you like the story. I hope you will enjoy the future chapters.**

 **buzzsaw935: Thanks for reviewing. I am glad you liked what happened to Hux. I agree that Kylo Ren and Kuvira should have had some time together to discuss what has developed between them. But Snoke's orders came to recall Kylo Ren back to the Supremacy as he wants to study and contain this before he knows what to do with it. Also, I honestly think that Kuvira and Kylo Ren would take any chance they had to escape from this. They are simply not sure what the hell happened or how to even proceed. It flies in the face of everything they have ever known or been taught. With that in mind they did not put up much of a fight to gain some time to think and get back to what they know.**

 **Kai: Thanks for the review it really meant a lot to read that. There are a lot of really great authors on this site I have at least 300 favourite stories. I am really glad you consider me one of them. I hope you enjoy the future chapters as much.**

 **Guest (2** **nd** **): Thanks for the review. Yes, that was a reference to Admiral Spire from** **Battlafleet: Gothic Armada. I am glad you caught that as no one else seemed to catch on. I felt I needed someone to take over for Hux and the 10** **th** **fleet. If I was going to have a competent commander in charge of defending a large space Empire. Could I really ask for better then High Admiral Spire?**

 **Sage-Faerie of The Marsh: Thanks for the review as always. I am glad you like the direction I am taking Kylo Ren. Like you I always felt that he had so much to be potential to match Vader or even surpass him and be what he never had the chance to be. But he was held back by this need to create drama between him and the idealistic Rey and to keep their whole 'redemption' message going. Well I am sick of redemption. So now that Kylo has a thing for Kuvira, a woman who has no loyalty to the New Republic or Jedi. I hope we can make him what he could have been and hopefully will be in the ninth movie.**

 **JtDS6889: Thanks for the review. I am glad you like the drama that I am trying to work in with Snoke knowing about the relationship between Kylo Ren and Kuvira as well as the promotions for Kuvira and Spire.**

 **I am really glad you like the inclusion of Tam in this story as she has quickly become one of my favourite characters in the Star Wars universe. Her betrayal by Kaz and Yeagar and her joining the First Order are providing some well needed balance to the story of the two sides. I also like how she is not so blind to the need for order and stability that the New Republic ignores. And like you I was cheering at the screen when she joined the First Order properly.**

 **I regards to Hux I have taken what you said into account. It is also one of the reasons I did not have Kuvira just shoot him on the spot. More opportunities for the future if he is still alive.**

 **Mnmaloney: Thanks for the review. I am glad you like the story and hope you like the new chapters. With the Last Jedi here, things will start to become more defined with Kuvira and Kylo Ren.**

 **Guest (3** **rd** **): Thank you for the review. They are all really a pleasure to read. I have taken what you said about Hux into account. It is also one of the reasons I did not have Kuvira just shoot him on the spot. More opportunities for the future if he is still alive.**

 **TheRealTayler13: Thanks for the review. I hope the wait for the new chapters was worth it.**

 **Shade Thanks for the review: As always it is great to read them and to know that people are still enjoying the story. Thank you for you vote for House Aeducan. I have not received many responses to the poll so hopefully one will be easy to select.**

 **Yodaface: Thanks for the review. No Kuvira will keep her usual black First Order uniform. The Grand Admiral Title has only just been officially created in the First Order and as such there is no official separate uniform. Even if there was Kuvira is heading out to crush the Resistance and then command a galactic war. She would not be willing to waste time being measured for a new uniform.**

 **Chapter 22 – Preparation**

 **Resurgent Class Star Destroyer – Reclaimer**

"Grand Admiral, the Defiance has confirmed their location and will re-join the rest of the fleet within ten minutes. Meanwhile the Victory and the Intrepid have also confirmed that they will be re-joining the fleet once they complete the pacification of their designated worlds. Both planets are sparsely populated and heavily out gunned. The issue of terms and the anticipated surrender is expected within two hours and from another two hours to complete the rendezvous with the rest of the 1st Fleet." Captain Pacorus reported.

Kuvira stood on the bridge as she studied the tactical readout on the bridges main monitor station. "And the Indomitable. When will that be able to rejoin the fleet?" She asked curiously.

Pacorus checked his readout briefly before he offered a response. "Unfortunately, the Indomitable was dispatched to the far side of Wild Space. They are making full speed to the rendezvous point at Dantooine but they will not make it there by the confirmed time." Pacorus reported regretfully as the planet of Dantooine became visible through the bridge transparasteel windows as the planets orbit carried it in front of the ship's view.

Kuvira nodded in disappointment. The Indomitable was aptly named as it was one of the 1st Fleets most successful capital ships behind the Reclaimer itself. Having it in the upcoming battle would be a great boast to both their firepower and their overall morale.

But the galaxy and simple logistics were not in her favour today. She had ordered all the ships of the 1st Fleet to reassemble at Dantooine as fast as possible after that eternal fool Hux had scattered them to the far ends of the galaxy. She had so far managed to build the fleet back up to a strength of ten Star destroyers and one Mandator IV-class Siege Dreadnought, the Fulminatrix.

Unfortunately, none of the four Interdictor cruisers that typically accompanied the fleet had been able to make it to the assembly pointy yet. She knew that she would probably be forced to leave without them. She could not afford to delay the attack on the Resistance base any longer. The more time she spent waiting for missing ships was more time that the Resistance could evacuate the base and disappear into the depths of the galaxy.

She was confident that with ten-star destroyers she would have the Resistance's scrapheap of a fleet overmatched. But without any of the Interdictor cruisers and their gravity wells. She could not cut off the Resistance forces from retreat into hyperspace.

She shook the thought away. Being concerned with facts and events she could not change was a waste of time and energy she could devote to another matters.

She turned back to Pacorus. "Are any other ships expected to make it to us within the next half hour?" She asked.

Pacorus did not need to check his information display as he shook his head. "I am afraid not Grand Admiral. The next ship to arrive is the Resolute, in just under fifty minutes." He responded regretfully.

Kuvira nodded and stood up straight from the viewscreen. "We cannot wait here any longer. We must attack the Resistance now, while we know where they are. Tell all the remaining unaccounted for ships that they are to assemble here at Dantooine and are to await my orders."

At the captain's nod of acknowledgment, she turned away and began to walk down the bridge central walkway. As she walked through the bridge she raised her voice so all the command crews could hear her orders. "Send the order to the fleet. Battlestations, all crews to their fighters. Set a course for the D'Qar system and prepare to jump into Hyperspace on our mark." Kuvira ordered as she left their bridge to the sound of a chorus of 'Yes, Grand Admiral' from each member of the command crew.

Kuvira left the bridge with her black greatcoat billowing out behind her. As she passed the doors to the bridge the two Praetorian guards who had been standing guard at the entrance fell away from the walls and took up position at her sides.

She had dismissed the guards from active duty when she had finished with her sentencing of Hux. She had been aware that while the guards might have great skill and endurance. They were still mortal men. As such she had dismissed them so they could eat and sleep before the next phase of the war began.

They had departed and had returned in just over three hours to resume their duties. She had no idea if they had some way to function on less sleep. Whether it was biological, technological or some unnatural gift of the Supreme Leader she did not know.

But one day she would ask. If she could function adequately with less sleep then she currently needed. She would be able to achieve so much more in every given day.

For now, she was returning to her quarters. She had no intention of sleeping as they would be leaving for D'Qar in moments and the journey would only take about an hour for the fleet to make it to the Resistance base.

She certainly was feeling like she could use a full night's rest after the stress of the last few days. Stress physical and emotional. Most came as a standard prerequisite of her job. But the majority of the emotional stress was related to matters far more personal and far more recent.

But she had a job to do and she was able to function normally for a few more hours without resorting to regulation stimulants. After that she would hopefully be granted a moment to rest and then focus on the next stage of the war.

If not she would work for as long as she could before needing to turn over command due to her focus being compromised.

But for now, she had a matter to resolve as she entered her quarters and her eyes quickly locked on the one person in the room.

Tamara Ryvora.

The young woman jumped up from the chair she had been sat in and turned her eyes away from the impressive collection of holobooks that filled the shelves on the walls of the living room. She also dropped the virbosword that she had taken from the weapons rack in on the opposite wall and the blade clattered to the floor as the power pack caused sparks to ignite as it hit the metal floor.

Thankfully the weapons automated safety settings ensured that the weapon deactivated once it was lying on the cold floor.

Kuvira stared at the deactivated weapon on the floor for another second before she raised her stare towards Tamara who was looking like she dearly wished she had made a better impression then to be caught fiddling with the Grand Admiral's personal belongings.

Kuvira stepped into the room while the Praetorian guards took up their usual position on the outside of the doorway. Then she closed the door panel and moved closer towards her nervous guest.

Tam had no idea why she was currently waiting in the personal home of the Grand Admiral of the First Order. In truth when she had been brought here and told to wait for Kuvira's return by Agent Tierny. She had briefly wondered if she was expected to perform 'services' for the Grand Admiral if she was so inclined.

In truth the real reasons were much less sordid.

Standard protocol dictated that when a new recruit was first brought into the First Order. They were taken to the nearest recruitment station to be evaluated. They were tested on physical, mental and moral attributes. There were also quizzed on their political leaning and their willingness to authority.

Once that was done they were taken to a training facility; either on one of their planetary bases or on special ships dedicated to training like the Absolution. There they were trained in weaponry, combat, flying, tactics and other military skills. In addition, there were also given an education in history, medicine, politics, mechanics, and espionage just to name a few. They also underwent extensive psychological analyse and refitting.

Once they had completed their training they were assigned to a role and a unit based on their score and talents during training. Those that showed skill in piloting and naval tactics were naturally assigned to the fleet. Those who were soldiers at heart were sent to the stormtrooper core. Those with skills in other area's were sent to the First Order's various other services like the FOSB or the First Order Outreach Bureau.

But in Tam's case that had not been possible.

The Fleet needed to get moving to D'Qar as soon as it was amassed to the full strength it could be in the given time. They had no time to make drop off runs on one of their training facilities. In addition, she could not be placed in one of their barracks with all the soldiers and pilots being prepared for battle without potentially getting in the way and endangering lives.

She also carried potential valuable information about the Resistance and their activities on Castilon and potentially other worlds. That alone made her too valuable to be simply discarded on some world or ship at this crucial time of war.

With all that in mind Kuvira have given her orders to be taken to her personal quarters. Here she would not endanger the preparations the fleet was undergoing. And it would give Kuvira a chance to question her personally and see what Tierny had seen in her.

With that in mind she walked over to Tam who was still rooted in place (picking up the vibroblade as she walked) until she was stood directly in front of her.

Tam looked up into the Grand Admiral's emerald green eyes that were so hard that they looked like they were cut from jade. She wanted to speak or to have something happen to break the crushing tension she was feeling but she had no idea what to say.

Then the Admiral held out her hand and Tam realised she was still holding her holobook from the record shelf. With hands that were almost shaking she handed the book back to Kuvira who turned it over in her hands to study the title.

'The Huk Wars: The Campaigns of Qymaen jai Sheelal' She read

She looked up at Tam's nervous face. "Why did you select this one?" She asked with no hint of her feelings in her voice.

Tam took a moment to compose herself before she summoned up the courage and resolve that had led her through the darkest and most disheartening days on Castilon. She squared her shoulders and stared the older woman full in her imposing face. "It was the first one that came up on the index system. It was registered as the most recently read and one of the most often read. I wanted to take a look to see why you found it so interesting." She said, managing to keep the tremor out of her voice as she gulped down the hutt ball sized lump in her throat.

Kuvira nodded. "It is one of my favourites. Qymaen jai Sheelal was a military genius. His victories with a smaller force and less weaponry deserves to be studied. His motivations for his people also deserve respect." She mused as she walked over to the wall and placed the holobook back on the shelf. Then she went to the weapons rack on the adjacent wall and placed it back in the support holders next to a small collection of other personnel weapons both ranged and melee.

Once that was done she turned back to face Tam who had not moved as she watched the Grand Admiral walk around the room.

She then moved back towards the seating area and sat down on the unadorned but comfortable chair that sat in the right side of the room. Her quarters on the Reclaimer had been hers for years and in that time she had taken the time to do some personnel decorating.

Her quarters were not overly spartan, but they were strictly utilitarian. Her main sitting room consisted of the sofa and two chairs. There was the weapons rack on the wall, the holobook shelf and vidscreen connected to the holonet and the ships communication network. He bedroom and bathroom were through the closed doorways to the side of the room and the was no evidence that the room had ever been anything other then organised and well defined.

The only decorations aside from the weapons rack, bookshelf and vidscreen were the red and black First Order banners hanging from the walls. If the bedroom was more a personal space, Tamara would never find out.

Kuvira now gestured to the second chair that sat across from her and Tam (after a moment of hesitation) made her way over to it and sat down.

She saw in the young woman's body language that she was nervous and uncomfortable. She knew that was expected given the situation she found herself in. But it would not make her more open to talking about her experiences with the Resistance. It might also undo the work that Agent Tierny had no doubt done to make the girl more relaxed and at home among the First Order.

She needed to ensure she remained compliant and relaxed in the organisation that would hopefully become her home.

With that in mind Kuvira allowed body posture to relax (but never entirely) and she regarded Tamara with an unthreatening gaze. She did not smile or attempt to be overly friendly as she could see that Tamara was not an idiot and had seen Kuvira for the stern disciplinarian that she was right away. She would know that friendliness would screaming fake. So, she simply settled for neutral.

"I apologise for the unorthodox reception you have had Miss Ryvora. Typically, new recruits go through a very well defined and planned process. But you have come to the First Order at an unfortunate time. Would you like something to eat, or some refreshment?"

Tamara hesitated for a second before she responded nervously. "I could really go for a Cirilian Sour Paste, sir umm maam." She hurriedly corrected.

Kuvira raised an eyebrow at the unknown drink but her beverage droids had access to virtually every cocktail and concoction in the known galaxy. She was sure they could manage it.

Kuvira keyed her commlink and activated her personal frequency to the Reclaimer's officers mess hall and her personnel droid attendant. "T1-N1, please bring me a glass of my usual Meiloorun Juice. Along with a cup of Caf." She ordered before she placed the communication on hold and turned to regard Tam. "And please bring a Cirilian Sour Paste as well as some Tepasi taffy." She ordered as she closed down the commlink.

She saw Tam looking at her in surprise at the last comment and offered a small shrug. "I try not to indulge, but even I have my guilty pleasures. Being a Grand Admiral comes with some privileges." She offered by way of explanation.

Tam nodded in understanding and before long the door chimed, and the serving droids walked in and placed the drinks and the tray of taffy on the table between the chairs and adjacent sofa.

(They would normally check the food and drink then and there for poison. But Kuvira subtly waved them away so as not to freak out her young guest.)

After a small sip of her juice and seeing that Tam seemed to be more relaxed now that she had a familiar drink in her hands. Kuvira placed the glass down and regarded Tam, who seemed to get that now was the time to talk.

"Miss Ryvora. Agent Tierny has given me a preliminary report on the situation on Castilon. But she then needed to return to her duties with the war. She asked me to inform you that she will be following your progress with great interest. Also, that if you were to select a position in the First Order Security Bureau. She would happily mentor you through the training program." She said in the effort to make Tamara feel that she had a friend within the Order already.

Tamara did not respond but she was clearly uplifted by those words.

"But I understand that your desire is to be a pilot. Is that the case?" Kuvira inquired, eager to get the conversation flowing by asking her about her dreams.

"Yeah that's right. I've always wanted to be a pilot ever since I was small." Tam said as she lost herself in her memories and her visions of the future. It was hard to tell which one she was more focused on. "I used to have my own ship. But I eventually had to put it up as collateral for this big race to afford important repairs and equipment."

Tam paused as her previous euphoria was washed away in the painful memories. "I lost the race and my ship. All in one day." She signed. "That was how I made my way to Castilon and ended up working for…" She stopped as she seemed to struggle with the words that seemed to cause her deep anger and personal pain.

Kuvira waited as she seemed to force the words from her mouth. "For Yeager." She spat the word out as if it tasted bad in her mouth. But beneath the bluster Kuvira could sense great emotional distress at the mention of the Resistance agent.

"Yes, Mr Jarek Yeager. A former Rebel pilot and veteran of the Galactic Civil War. Participated in the Battle of Jakku and a former member of Fireball squadron. Family includes a younger brother and a wife and daughter who are long deceased. Retired to the Outer Rim Territories, roughly twenty years later and since then has worked as a mechanic on Castilon." Kuvira recited from memory.

When she noticed Tamara's overwhelmed expression she offered a small smile. "The First Order Security Bureau is very good at what they do. They have to be to make sure that the criminals, fanatics and terrorists of the galaxy remain in check." She explained. "Especially if they have any previous or current affiliations with the Rebellion or the Resistance."

Tam nodded as she was once again reminded of Yeager's real identity.

"You worked for Mr Yeagar for a number of years. In that time were you ever aware of his association with the terrorist group known as the Resistance or any other criminal organisations?" Kuvira asked neutrally.

Tam instantly shook her head in denial. "No! I had no idea!" She blurted out before she got herself under control. "I mean I knew he fought for the New Republic. I mean the Rebellion." She hastily corrected, worried that Kuvira would not recognise the enemy by their official name. "But Yeager always told me that he had come all the way out to Castilon to get away from the military life."

She paused as her expression grew dark once again. "I guess that was just one more lie he told me." She muttered bitterly.

Kuvira simply hummed in response. She saw no need to confirm or enforce conclusions that Tamara was already coming to by herself. But that did not mean she would not build on them. "With what we know and what you have told us it seems likely that Mr Yeagar was sent to Castilon directly on the orders of General Leia Organa. They knew that our border would soon reach Castilon as more surrounding worlds asked for our protection. They probably wanted him their to have a spy who could send them reports on our patrols." She 'theorised'.

"While I cannot be certain, he likely hired you and your Nikto friend, Neeku Vozo, in order to make his cover as a mechanic more viable. Not even the best mechanic in the galaxy can operate an entire garage alone. And droids are not suitable for most complex maintenance tasks. Therefore, he would have been forced to at least have a presentable staff to ward off suspicion." Kuvira mused as she allowed Tam to interpret her words as she saw fit.

By the way Tam's fingers gripped her Sour Paste container it was clearly having the effect she had been aiming at. And it gave her an opportunity to present her with a new foundation.

"You should not blame yourself for not seeing Yeager for what he truly was Tamara. He is skilled in his work and he would have been careful to make sure your never thought to question him or saw him without his public mask." Kuvira said in condolence.

Tam continued to scowl down at her knee's but Kuvira could see her shoulders rising and falling rabidly and shakily as she fought to contain her sorrows at this abject betrayal of one she clearly trusted. "I should have known what he was. How he always condemned the Empire even though many good people, like my grandfather served it. How he always sided with Kaz when he talked about the Resistance and how he was always against the First Order!"

She paused. "I should have seen it. But he was like a father to me." She whispered as her voice finally began to crack as the stress an emotion of the recent days finally caught up with her.

Kuvira was not one to offer hugs of comfort and whisper sweet nothings in someone's ear. But she was considerate enough to move beyond the painful topic. "And what was your first impression of Mr Kazuda Xiono when he arrived on Castilon." She asked as she studied her young guests body language.

Tamara looked up with an expression of annoyance. But Kuvira was confident that it was directed at the subject of their conversation rather than her. "Kaz?" She asked with a huff. "Not long ago I thought I knew him well enough to answer that. But apparently I never knew him at all." She snarled as she gave vent to her frustrations.

"Yeager brought him to the Colossus and they told me and Neeku that he was just another poor kid who dreamed of being a famous racer. I first thought he was just another guy with delusions, but he quickly showed everyone that he could fly really well. When I saw that I thought that he and I were cut from the same cloth. Both poor, both pilots and both trying to become aces and make a name for ourselves."

She paused as she considered. "I should have known he was no mechanic. He could barely tell one end of a hydro spanner from the other. But I guess his rich family and their servants always took care of that for him!" She said with clear bitterness in her voice.

Kuvira nodded. "Yes, far from being poor. Kazuda Xiono is in fact the son of a New Republic senator. He was enlisted into the New Republic navy due to his father pulling some strings in the admiralty. He certainly had the piloting skills necessary for the job but his academics were, less than impressive." She said as she carefully stoked Tamara's obvious resentments and jealousies.

Tam gapped for a moment before she put down her drink in disgust. "No wonder he was always such an idiot. He has never had to actually think for himself!" She bit out.

Kuvira raised a placating hand. "Maybe so. But he was clever enough for the Resistance to recruit him and to maintain his cover as a spy." She reminded her guest.

Tam nodded. "I guess he was always much cleverer than he pretended to be. Just one more lie he told me." She said.

Kuvira had heard all she needed about the Resistance agents on Castilon. Anything more she could learn from the FOSB. Now she decided to get to the heart of the matter. "I can understand your desire to escape from people who lied and manipulated you to such an extent, Miss Ryvora. But I have to know, what made you accept Agent Tierny's offer to come with her and join the First Order?"

Kuvira showed no change in her posture or in her voice. But she was now paying very close attention. This was important. If Tamara was simply here because it was a convenient escape from the madness of Castilon or purely in an act of spite against her former friends. Then she would be no use to the First Order.

Kuvira needed to see if beneath all that, there was a spark of true belief in what the Order stood for and what they were truly fighting for.

Tamara hesitated as she seemed to be considering that question for the first time. It was quite possible that she had not really thought about it despite taking Tierny's offer. However, given the situation she had found herself in at that moment, it was understandable.

Finally, however. She seemed to find her words.

"I never gave much thought to actually joining the First Order before now. I was always so focused on finishing my jobs for Yeager and doing all I could to get the Fireball working so I could re-join the racing circuit. That was all I ever wanted. All I ever dreamed about." She paused.

"But I never really agreed with Yeager or Kaz about the Rebellion and the New Republic. I mean what had the New Republic ever done for us on Castilon or in the Outer Rim? The New Republic and the senate were only ever interested in staying in the nice rich core and mid rim worlds. They claimed planets in the outer rim but only so they could tax them and use the trade routes while providing nothing." She said as the passion in her voice began to become more noticeable.

"Yeager and Kaz always talked about how wonderful and heroic the New Republic and the Rebellion were. But I never saw any of that. The New Republic to me was an uncaring government of bureaucrat and lobbyists that had no reach or power beyond the core. And even that power was weak and more given out of courtesy then out of respect for it."

Meanwhile they both always talked about how evil the First Order and the Empire were. But I never agreed. My grandfather worked in an Imperial factory to support his family. The Empire gave him work when the Old Republic didn't, and it did not turn him into an evil tyrant like they always implied!" She said as her voice rose in anger and indignation.

Kuvira made no move to stop or interrupt her as she continued in her talking. Her explanation steadily becoming a full-blown speech.

"I always looked at the Empire and felt that it could have been so much better if the Rebels had just been patient and done what they were told. If it had not been for them and their war the Empire would never have had to build up the military so much and put the strain on the economy. Yes, the Empire took firm control but why was that a bad thing? The Clone Wars had just proven that leaving each planet to run its own affairs with no group loyalty was a bad idea. You could not trust them or their people to act for the good of the galaxy."

"And yes, I know that the Empire was forced to do some bad things like Alderaan. But that would never have happened if Alderaan and Bail Organa had not been funding the rebellion and arming them to cause more destruction. I never liked how he is remembered as a hero when he is literally the reason his entire world was destroyed."

Kuvira nodded as she saw the unmistakably signs of passion and fervour burning in Tamara's eyes as she reached the end of her spiel.

"The rebels and now the Resistance just seem to be constantly tearing the galaxy apart because they don't like how it is run. They rebelled against the Empire to build their New Republic and now that it has become corrupt and useless they are rebelling again in the Resistance. It proves that what they want does not work and is not realistic. They will just keep throwing the galaxy into war after war, again and again for their deluded dreams until someone stops them!" She finished, breathing heavily as she seemed to realise that her voice had almost reached shouting level.

Kuvira waited as the crescendo seemed to pass and as Tamara's allowed herself to get her emotions under control. She could see that she was also beginning to look slightly ashamed or embarrassed by her outburst.

Kuvira stood up (which immediately got Tamara's attention). She watched her for a moment before she turned around and walked over to the weapons rack on the wall.

Out of the corner of her eyes she could see Tamara flinch. Doubtless she felt she had failed in the test somehow and was about to be executed for it.

Not that Kuvira would have killed anyone for something so trivial. Even if she had failed she would have simply been escorted from the ship, given a new personal shuttle as compensation and allowed to leave to the location of her choice.

When she was facing the weapons rack, she spoke while turned away from Tamara. "You are right Tamara. You are completely right about all you have said. The rebels tore down an Empire that had united the galaxy under one law and one vision for the first time in millennia. They were willing to plunge the galaxy into yet another war less then 10 years after the fall of the Confederacy. And all this for either their selfish desires or their delusional ideals." She said as her disgust became apparent.

"Save the Rebellion. Save the dream." She said with heavy sarcasm.

Then she turned back to face Tam. "But what the Rebels never understood. And what the Resistance still does not understand. Is that many in the galaxy loved the Empire and its dream. Just as much as they loved their Republic." She proclaimed.

"They never acknowledged that there were billions of people, like your grandfather who served the Empire not through force, or intimidation or blackmail. But because they genuinely believed in it. I will admit the Empire made mistakes. Under Palpatine those mistakes cast a shadow on all that he had built. But even so, there were many accomplishments that were achieved. Foremost of which was the trillions of people who lived their lives on peaceful planets that never once saw a stormtrooper or heard the howl of a TIE fighter."

"That tranquillity and potential is what the Rebellion shattered into anarchy. And for the last three decades the New Republic has limped and stumbled onwards. Sustained by nothing but indulgence and nostalgia. But what did they expect when they tore down the lawful government and replaced it with a lose coalition of selfish governments, influenced by terrorists and partisans?" She asked with clear contempt and sardonic bafflement

She took a few steps towards Tam and stopped right in front of her as she sat in the chair. After a few seconds she reached into her coat and pulled out her commlink. But instead of setting the comm to connect with anyone. She simply activated the holoprojector.

Instantly a blue light projected the First Order insignia. The sixteen-rayed symbol inscribed within a hexagon that Tam stared at with clear interest in where this was going.

"But the dream of a united, ordered and prosperous galaxy can not be killed so easily. That is why the First Order exists. To restore what was taken from all of us by the Rebellion. To restore the only kind of government that can guide the galaxy through the dangerous times."

"The New Republic, like the Old Republic is a social experiment doomed to failure. It is doomed because its only foundation is childish idealism. Destructive ideals that encourage selfishness, promote divided loyalties, fuel rebellions, cause wars. The simple fact is every person, every choice, every opinion is not equal, no matter how much they want it to be. The strong and the capable will always rise and every living being is safer and happier knowing their place in the order of things." Kuvira proclaimed with passion.

As she spoke she moved closer and rested her hand on Tamara's shoulder as she looked into her eyes. "Like you and me." She said proudly. "Like me you have been forced to struggle, sacrifice and strive for everything you possess. You know that only the strong and capable individuals know what is best for the galaxy, because they have actually experienced the galaxy and bent it to their will. They know what it takes to keep a station, a planet and whole galaxy filled with people stable."

"That's why we have a duty to lead." She finished softly as Tamara looked at her with increasing awe. Then she closed down her commlink and took a step away.

"That is something those like Bail and Leia Organa, Mon Mothma and your own Kazuda Xiono will never understand. They have had life handed to them from the start and as a result they can believe the unrealistic idealism that they spout. It was probably very easy to be a democratic saint from their palaces on Alderaan and Hosnian Prime."

She hummed in annoyance at the notion and turned to regard the First Order banners hanging on the walls around her room. Perhaps in some efforts to fill the slightly uncomfortable silence after the impassioned speech. Tamara asked the question that had been burning in her mind for a while now. "So, what will happen to me now, Grand Admiral?" She asked

Kuvira regarded her appraisingly. "That choice remains yours miss Ryvora. You accepted Agent Tierny's offer on Castilon but you are not yet under any obligation to the First Order. You have now been told what we are fighting for in more detail and I have seen what Tierny no doubt saw in you. Potential that should not be wasted." Kuvira explained calmly.

Therefore, I offer you two choices. If you say that you want to leave you may do so. You will be provided with a ship and a fair monetary contribution for your information on the Resistance spies. After that you may leave our hanger and you may go wherever in the galaxy you wish." She said in a tone that was completely neutral. As she said those words she watched Tam's face and body language closely.

She noticed immediately how her shoulders slumped and her expression fell as her eyes took on a distant look. No doubt the prospect of being cast adrift in the galaxy with e possession, no allies and no destination was not appealing to the young woman.

Just as Kuvira anticipated.

"My other offer is this." She said as Tamara looked up from her musings. "Stay here and help me and the First Order bring peace to this galaxy through strength and order, the right way. The only way."

"If you accept you will be enrolled in our pilot training program. You will be given the chance to prove you pilot skills in our state-of-the-art TIE fighters. If you succeed and pass the tests, you will be given the chance to be placed in our most elite fighter squadrons. Possibly my own squadron of Alpha unit." She added offhandedly.

"From there you will advance as far and as fast as your talents allow you. But Tierny said you might have the potential to live up to Major Vonreg. If that is true you future and potential are limitless. You will fly with the finest pilots in the First Order, as part of the strongest military force in the galaxy. You will fly as you have always dreamed and escape the chaotic underworld races that you were forced to survive in. But more then that, you will finally have a chance to make a life for yourself by fighting for a cause and a vision that I suspect you have always believed in." Kuvira finished as Tamara looked on with her features slack from the weight of all she had been told.

Kuvira said nothing more and simply waited. She had said all she needed to say. If Tamara did not accept her offer now then she never would. It was better to have it decided rather then waste more time on it later.

She did not have to wait long.

Tamara Ryvora looked up at her and this time. There was no hint of confusion, uncertainty or hesitance in her eyes. Now the fire of conviction blazed in them and Kuvira knew what was coming.

"I want to join the First Order, Grand Admiral. I want to fly with you, but I also want to help the galaxy in the only way it can be helped." She said firmly.

Kuvira nodded and walked over to the wall by the door where a large silver suitcase had been leaning. Tamara had been so focused on the room and the conversation that she had not noticed it. Kuvira picked up the case that her hanger droid had taken from her TIE fighter and made her way back to Tam. Carefully measuring her with her eyes as she did so.

"I had this made for another young woman who showed great promise. It was my hope that she would eventually see the justice of our cause and join us. But we lost her in the recent battle. But I think this will suit you, just as well. Maybe even better." She said with a hint of respect in her voice.

Tamara took the case from Kuvira and watched as the Grand Admiral walked back to the door. "I must leave you now Tamara. We are jumping to lightspeed within 10 minutes for the D'Qar system and I must be on the bridge. I will send an aide to collect you and take you through the recruitment process."

She paused and turned back to the young woman with a small smile on the corner of her lips. "I will anticipate the reports of your success Tamara. If they materialise then one day soon we might join together as wing mates."

Tamara snapped to attention with the case in her arms. "Thank you, Grand Admiral Kuvira." She uttered with conviction.

Kuvira nodded in approval. A fast learner. Very good.

Then she turned and left the room, leaving Tam alone in the Grand Admiral's suite.

Tam stood still for a moment before she looked down at the case in her arms and opened it carefully. Inside was the newly pressed and shining back material of the uniform of the First Order. Her uniform now she supposed.

As she looked from the fine black material to the worn and filthy mechanic's outfit she was wearing. She felt, (for the first time in a long time) that her life was finally with a sense of destiny.

 **Authors Note**

 **Welcome back everyone. For those who were hoping for a more action-packed chapter after the break. I am sorry that this was more of a filler chapter. But I needed it to develop Kuvira some more and to explain Tam's real inclusion into the First Order and her thoughts behind it.**

 **Anyway, the next chapter takes us to D'Qar. Hope you will all enjoy that.**

 **As always please read and review.**


	23. Chapter 23 - Negotiation and Deception

**Tishaliz: Thanks, as always for the review. I try to be punctual in life and on deadlines. Almost to a fault some of my friends say. I hope you enjoy this chapter.**

 **DeceitfulSwordfish: Thanks for the review. They are always appreciated. I am glad you liked the interaction between Kuvira and Tam. I wanted for Tam's story to be developed and for her joining with the First Order to be more then just her trying to escape and spite her former friends who lied to her. She has always been sympathetic to the First Order and the Empire. Now I want her to see her place with them as a natural development. It also gave me a chance to develop Kuvira a bit more in an unformal one on one talk.**

 **Master Skywalker 121: Thank you for the review. I am always glad to meet a fellow supporter of the Empire and the First Order. That was actually why I started writing this. To add some balance to a universe that is very heavily biased in the Rebels and Republic favour despite all the shit they do. I am glad you like Kuvira as a character. I am trying to flesh her out to show that she is not a simple tyrant or Mary sue character. I am also trying to keep it roughly balanced. To show that Kuvira will blow up a planet it is for victory and not for her sadistic glee.**

 **Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter. I will also be brining back Kylo Ren after the battle for he and Kuvira can have that discussion about where they stand.**

 **Chapter 23 – Negotiation and Deception**

 **D'Qar – The Reclaimer Command Bridge**

 **Kuvira – POV**

The Star destroyer Reclaimer burst out of the ethereal swirling blue tunnel of hyperspace and watched as the darkness of space reasserted itself. In front of the ship the green and blue marble of D'Qar hung in the void as the distant stars continued to shine as if nothing was amiss.

Behind the star destroyer came the rest of the assembled First Order 1st Fleet. Or at least, the ships that had been re-assembled in the short time since former General Hux had scattered them to the farthest fringes of the galaxy. The Reclaimer was soon joined by nine identical counterparts as the fleet flashed back into existence behind it.

The fleet was arrayed in a classical wedge shape formation as the Reclaimer took central point within the formation with the remaining nine star-destroyers being placed on the flanks. The formation was simple but highly effective in military naval warfare. It ensured a strong yet flexible formation that allowed the fleet to be able to meet strong forward offensive fire head one while also allowing the flanks of each individual ship to be protected by its allies.

The fact that the Resurgent class was able to boast a hugely improved array of weaponry and direct targeting systems allowed them to cut apart virtually any attacking force as it created an impassable firestorm across the attacking vectors of their enemies.

It would also allow for any important vessels to be protected in the centre of the formation if the need arose. Which if the battle progressed as expected, would be a great benefit to the First Order.

Grand Admiral Kuvira, stood in the command centre of the Reclaimer's bridge in her full dress black uniform and greatcoat as she surveyed D'Qar through the transparisteel viewport as the planet below continued on its rotation. In all her studying of military supply routes, evidence from spies and the whispers of the galactic rumor mill. She would never have thought to look for the Resistance base on this backwater world. But she supposed that was the point of a secret base. To be unnoticeable.

However, she was infinitely more interested in the Resistance 'fleet' (and she used that term generously) that was even now hanging in high orbit of the planet.

She studied the Resistance ships with her typical cold and calculating gaze. Even as the bridge lit up with holographic displays and tactical readouts, she was analysing the ships with her own gaze and with her memory of the reports she had received from the FOSB.

The Resistance fleet consisted of four ships. First there was the Vigil; a Vakbeor-class cargo frigate manufactured by Kuat Drive Yards. It was later captured by Resistance commandos from pirates during a battle off the Chasidron Shoals. Since then it had been placed under the command of Vice Admiral Jotis in the Resistance's campaign against the First Order. It was a hybrid design known as a cargo frigate which combined basic defences with additional cargo capacity. No doubt it was carrying the majority of the Resistance's small arms and supplies.

Next was the Anodyne; a previously decommissioned Nebulon-C escort frigate that had found its way from a salvage yard to a Resistance friendly repair facility that had provided extensive repairs in its final conversion to a hospital ship. Through it had been stripped of most of its armaments it still boasted an assortment of turbolasers, point-defence cannons and tractor beam projectors.

Third was the Ninka; Under the command of Vice Admiral Holdo. Unlike its scrapheap sister ships, the Ninka was a spry and versatile vessel. While it was small for a cruiser it was fully dedicated to weaponry and it was thereby the second most powerful ship in their fleet. It was of Corellian design and was known for its ability to carry hefty and destructive ordinance. Including the Virgillian designed heavy plasma bombs for orbital strikes.

The fourth ship (and undoubtably the command ship) was the Raddus, named for the Rebel Admiral how died at the battle of Scariff. The ship was over three kilometres long and it was the only one of the fleets vessels that could actually claim to be a proper warship. It was one of the last warships designed for the New Republic prior to the Galactic Concordance Disarmament treaty and even being thirty years old, it was still formidable.

Increased automation and the removal of redundant systems had made the Raddus perfect for the numerically challenged Resistance. But the key strength was in its new prototype shields that far surpassed anything that had previously been created and allowed the ship to project a deflector barrier far from its hull. Naturally therefore this ship had become the flagship and mobile base for the entire Resistance.

Kuvira had to give credit where it was due. Though the Mon Calamari had been nothing but a pain to the Empire and the First Order. They knew how to build ships.

As she regarded the Resistance fleet she was almost disappointed. The First Order commanded the largest and most advanced fleet in the known galaxy. The 1st fleet in turn was the pride of the Order and was the most decorated and experienced fleet in the navy.

To be confronted by what amounted to a flying testament to desperation, filled with ships stolen or salvaged from refuse piles was nothing short of insulting.

However even as the thought crossed her mind she admonished herself and forced herself to not fall into the trap of overconfidence. Ancient military wisdom often said that 'it was always a bad sign when it did not seem possible to lose'.

Afterall who in their right mind would have thought thirty one-man fighters could have brought down the first Death Star?

Kuvira also studied the moving chain of small transports that were even now flying from the planet surface (from the estimated location of the base) to the safety of the Raddus crusier in their efforts to evacuate the planet. But it seemed that they had run out of time.

"We have caught them in the middle of their evacuation, Grand Admiral." Captain Peavey had reported. He had been moved from the Finalizer to fill in the role of sub commander for this battle. Kuvira had transferred Pacorus to the 'Strikefast' to take up his own command. Besides she felt that Peavey as a veteran of Imperial military service deserved to witness the reconquest of the galaxy from the best view possible.

Kuvira turned to regard Peavey as he walked up to her with a satisfied smirk on his face and a noticeable swagger in his step as he moved from the tactical monitor to join her on the central walkway. She nodded and regarded him with her typical pragmatic gaze. But she allowed some humour to creep into her voice as she responded. She had long ago come to realise that no commander, however skilled and decorated could be an emotionless droid with their subordinates and expect true loyalty in return.

A little human emotion was required in order to be the leader that could truly inspire loyalty. Carefully balanced with efficiency and pragmatism.

"Well it seems that their preparations were warranted but inefficient." She said as she watched the Resistance fleet begin to take up what would normally be considered a defensive perimeter around the still moving column of transport ships that moved from the planet.

However, the disparity in power between the two forces was almost laughable. The First Order would sweep that formation aside as if it was a cloud of vapor. The Raddus might be able to prove a competent adversary to one Resurgent class star destroyer. But against ten it was hopelessly outmatched and even its shields would not be able to stand such concentrated firepower.

"We have our orders from the Supreme Leader himself. Order all ships to maintain formation, prepare fighters for launch on my command, recycle the shields and allow the turbolasers to reset to the required parameters." She commanded as the comm officers began to relay the messages to the entire fleet.

"Inform Captain Canady to bring his dreadnaught into the system at the provided coordinates and to take up position in the centre of the formation. I want the dreadnaught to be secured behind our defences and in an unassailable position to fire onto the Resistance forces." She said to the comm officer and waited for the monitors to light up with the indication that the final ship in the fleet had arrived.

She did not have to wait long.

The First Order dreadnaught, the Fulminatrix shot into the system directly behind the First Order formation and immediately the enormous black hulled ship fell into position behind the amassed Resurgent class star destroyers.

The Fulminatrix was one of the First Order's most effective weapons after the loss of Starkiller base. It was one of the newly designed Mandator IV-Class Siege Dreadnaught. The entire surface of the deck was bristling with target point defence cannons. The ship was also capable of carrying a full fighter compliment and even now was preparing its pilots to launch into battle at a moment's notice.

But the true power, value and beauty of the Mandator Class Dreadnaught was the fact that contained in its under-surface hull were two enormous heavy orbital-bombardment cannons. These experimental weapons were capable of punching through all but the strongest of planetary defence shields to rain fire and death down on their enemies. They contained enough power to blow surface bases to rubble and tear capital ships in half.

Previously tough Rebel bases such as Hoth, Atallon and now D'Qar were rendered defenceless and even capital ships like the Raddus could be sheared in half by the cannons with a direct hit.

The dreadnaught was quite possibly all Kuvira would need to destroy the heart of the Resistance in one devastating blow.

She nodded in satisfaction as she watched the Fulminatrix take up position exactly where she had instructed and was now well defended behind the wedge of star destroyers. Not to mention its own formidable defences.

"Tell Captain Canady to prepare the autocannons to fire and to take aim at the primary target. I want him to fire at will as soon as he is able to reach full power." Kuvira instructed as the comms officers once again began relaying the instructions to the fleet.

She was about to turn to Captain Peavey to get an update on the Resistance fleet transports, when in the destroyer's bridge pit, a stern monitor eyes a red X shape on her radar screen, her surroundings lit red for ideal visibility during battlefield conditions. "Grand Admiral, Resistance ship approaching. X-wing class, guns and shields in attack mode." She reported with clarity, but she was unable to hide the confusion in her voice even as she said the words.

Kuvira made her way to regard the monitors viewscreen and saw that the monitor was correct. She regarded the tactical for a moment while her mind lept into action as it analysed the likely strategies the Resistance was attempting. "A single light fighter, X-wing class…. Dameron." She muttered, half to herself and half to the Monitor and Captain who were beside her also watching the screen.

Instantly Kuvira felt the situation fall into perfect clarity.

She had always been a firm believer in knowing as much about an enemy as possible before ever engaging them. The great Admiral Thrawn had said that 'to defeat an enemy you must know them. Not simply their battle tactics, but their history, philosophy, art.'

Kuvira had never had Thrawn's skill or deductive skills when it came to artwork. It was not for lack of trying. Over the years she had spent hours staring at paintings, sculptures, drawings, and all manner of artistic expression from multiple species. But no matter how much she studied or observed for learned. She simply could not see what Thrawn was able to have seen.

Eventually she had been forced to admit that this particular skill was simply beyond her. But in its place she had mastered a different skill. In addition to an enemy's history, philosophy or art. She had added a fourth category.

Personality.

People could and would act in completely unpredictable ways in utter contrast to all tactical sense, because of who they were as a person.

If they were reckless, or overly cautious. If they were naturally optimistic or pessimistic. If they were trusting by nature, or cynical by choice. If they held higher beliefs or ultimately believed in nothing.

All these and more could allow a skilled commander to know what an opponent would do even if they did not until it was too late.

That was what allowed her to know what Dameron was going to be planning in this seemingly suicide attack.

Poe Dameron was a skilled pilot. In fact, he was undoubtably one of the best in the known galaxy. He was a gifted soldier; a charismatic leader and he had a natural ability to inflame the passions of many people to the resistance cause. Kazuda Xiono and FN-2187 were clear evidence of this.

But he had flaws as well. The greatest being that he was young and naïve. While she admitted it was hypocritical for her to mock his youth, as she was about the same age. But the difference was that she was a Grand Admiral in both name and in mindset.

In contrast Dameron was a Wing Commander in name, but he remained a flight jockey in his mindset. He saw his X-wing as a favourite toy and not his weapon of war. He flew into battle more because he found it fun then to fulfil his duty. Despite his experience with loss he still regarded war and battle as a game which needed to be fought with pathetic quips and attempts at humour.

He viewed retreat of any kind as cowardly and refused to consider the possibility that he could be defeated. He failed to acknowledge that sometimes discretion was the better part of valour. And he viewed not being privy to every decision or secret in the Resistance as a personal insult rather than simple prudence.

He also was determined to do what he personally viewed as morally correct instead of what was strategically sound or even simple common sense. If he had left Jakku moment the First Order had been spotted he might have got off the planet and given the map to the Resistance long ago. Instead he had decided to return to protect his friend Lor San Tekka and in so doing, allowed the First Order to capture him and the information they needed.

Most off all. He maintained a belief in the invincibility of himself and the Resistance. While he must have been aware that he could be killed at any second in battle. He still did not truly believe it could happen to him. Other people of course, but not to him. Meanwhile he had never truly allowed himself to consider the possibility that the Resistance could fail or that General Organa capable of mistakes.

He was still a child at heart. And in his child like mind. The 'good guys' always win.

That made his faith and resolve strong. But it also made it brittle. If it was proven to be wrong. Then there was a good chance it would shatter.

It was with all this knowledge that Kuvira had armed herself and it was with that knowledge that she was able to decipher Dameron's plan.

Clearly this was his attempt to perform a classically flashy heroic gesture that would be remembered in song and legend and give the Resistance their precious hope in their futile struggle. It was also a clear attempt to play for time while the Resistance got its fleet evacuated and then to jump out of the system.

It was also likely a chance for him to hurl his insulting and oh so witty banter at the First Order, in a juvenile attempt to make his colleagues and himself laugh at their expense.

Dameron was not one to perform a move like this and not ensure it was as dynamic and as memorable as possible. In the end his need to show off was one of his greatest weaknesses.

As she finished her musings and stepped back onto the central command platform she heard the comm channel crackle to life as a signal was forced through on all channels. "This is Commander Poe Dameron of the Republic fleet; I have an urgent communique for Grand Admiral Kuvira." The voice that came through was definitely Dameron and it reaffirmed her reading of the situation.

Kuviraa nodded to the communications tech. "Patch him through." Once the tech gave a nod of confirmation she began to speak. "This is Grand Admiral Kuvira of the First Order. I am here, please relay your superiors' message." She stated flatly. All the while she made sure that the fleet preparations were still being carried out as previously ordered.

After a moment silence the response came back. And it was just the kind of response she had been expecting. "Hi, I'm holding for Grand Admiral Kuvira …. OK, I'll hold." He said in a surprised tone that fooled no one.

Kuvira fought the urge to roll her eyes. "I refuse to play this game." She turned to the communications tech. "Override the signal and force connection, audio and visual. Ensure it is hailed on all frequencies. If the Resistance is listening, I want them to hear this." She ordered as she moved to stand in front of the holoprojector that soon sent her holographic image across space and forcing it to project on the X-Wing dashboard.

She ignored the startled look on Dameron's face as she suddenly appeared on his viewscreen as he was clearly rehearsing his next line in his little performance. "Yes, I can hear you perfectly Commander Dameron. Just as perfectly as you can hear me. Now do you want to patch me through to General Organa or have you simply decided to waste time and amuse yourself while your compatriots run for their lives?" She asked in a tone of sardonic contempt.

Dameron's look of shock turned quickly to one of annoyance and resentment. Clearly he did not like to have his fun spoiled. After a few seconds he regained his trademark smirk and responded flippantly. "Don't blame me for your faulty equipment Admiral. It was your comms system that was acting up. But then, slave labour, you get what you paid for." He threw out in clear mockery of the First Order.

Kuvira did not even blink at his retort. "I hardly think you are in a position to cast criticism on our fleet, Commander. Now please patch me through to General Organa. Others may find your buffoonery entertaining. But I have no time to waste on childish games." Kuvira stated in a tone of supreme indifference. Already she was seeing her words have the desired effect as Dameron's face grew tight and his eyes lost their mirth and became hard in anger.

'Good, an enraged and publicly humiliated Wing Commander would be that much more likely to make reckless mistakes and endanger the lives of his pilots to 'even the score'.

Thankfully Dameron shut up as he made the connection. At the same time Kuvira turned to Peavey. "I want that X-wing in our sights. If it twitches, destroy it. Have our fighters scrambled and placed in defence formation around their respective Star Destroyers." She commanded and then turned back to face the holoprojector.

Soon, a life size image of General Leia Organa appeared in the bridge of the Reclaimer. At the same time a lifesize image of Kuvira's head and torso appeared in the holographic display table on the Raddus.

For a long moment, both women just stared at each other. At the same time the command crews on both the Reclaimer and the Raddus turned to watch what was about to happen. For a moment, both sides were in complete agreement, in that they wanted to see what would happen now.

The contrast between the two women could not have been more pronounced.

Leia was old, with greying hair and held herself in a small stooping posture while leaning on her cane. Kuvira was young with hair as black as the void and standing so straight it seemed her spine wad made of Beskargam.

Everything Leia was wearing was a testament to who she was as a person, not as a General. She wore her grey hair in the cultural Alderaanian mourning braid, to honour the dead at Hosnian Prime. Her clothes were also Alderaanian in origin but cast in mourning black as was often her style in the last few years. Some said it was in response to those who saw her as nothing but Darth Vader's daughter. If that was how they saw her, then that was what she would show them.

Her Oro-weave bracelet, her signet rings and her Aurodium earrings. All these showed her life and yhe experiences she had led to allow her to become the person she was.

Kuvira allowed no such adornment. She wore nothing but the black uniform of the First Order, complete with black gloves, boots and greatcoat. The only thing that identified her as an individual was her displayed rank insignia. Beyond that she perfectly confirmed to the requirements and demands that the First Order and her people, expected and deserved.

For a moment they simply let the silence hang as the two long term enemies and leaders of their factions stared at each other. Both had long thought about what they would do or say if they ever got the chance to speak to the other one on one. But now that they finally had the chance, they needed a moment to compose themselves and compile their thoughts.

Leia regarded Kuvira with an expression that was steadfast, unflinching but with a touch of remorse if one looked deep enough. When Leia had first learned of Kuvira, she had been curious as any General should be when learning of a new enemy. She had regarded her with the logical analyse of a military leader, seeing what she could learn about her strengths and weaknesses. She had regarded her as nothing more than an obstacle to the survival of the New Republic and the goals of the Resistance.

So, she had quickly turned her mind on how to destroy her or defeat her.

But over the years she had been forced to acknowledge that Kuvira was not a simple blustering war mongering fool like Hux or old Imperial leaders like Rax and Vader.

She had seen that Kuvira was commanding and resourceful. And she wielded military tactics and leadership as well as Imperial and Rebel legends had done in the Galactic Civil war. More than that, she had the rare ability to command the respect of her subordinates and their fear in equal measure. While mediocre commanders could get by with one or the other. Learning how to balance them was hard. It was an act that won Kuvira a modicum of respect by itself.

But that was not what made Leia respect Kuvira or feel remorse in having to fight her. She had kept close tabs on the First Order over the years as they expanded their territory across the Outer Rim and into the border lands.

She had been saddened and enraged to see the New Republic simply allow those worlds to fall, almost without caring. Just as she had been saddened that those worlds had abandoned the New Republic so easily. Though she had to admit to herself, that the New Republic never gave those worlds much reason to be loyal to it. Its exploitation and core centric policy had been even less well hidden then that of the Old Republic.

And so those worlds had once again been left to rot. So, when the chance came for them to join a new Empire that was rising and had its heartlands based in the rim and unknown regions. They had felt that at last they might get their fair chance, protection and prosperity.

She had sent many agents to those worlds in the hopes of gaining access to valuable intel. Not to mention giving a local Resistance movement a change to form with their help to overthrow the First Order occupation. In that time, she had come to see many changes in those worlds that left her feeling nervous and at the same time hopeful.

Kuvira had taken those worlds and many in the Resistance had anticipated the citizens being turned into slaves or having their worlds strip minded keeping fuelling the First Order war machine. But that had not happened. Instead those worlds had been given protection by the First Order fleet.

The agents had all reported the same thing. That the worlds were undergoing a cosmopolitan revolution as cities were repaired and rebuilt while populations were rapidly growing. They had noted the presence of countless species from all over the galaxy. Including worlds that had been invaluable to the Rebel Alliance in their efforts to free their worlds from slavery and oppression by the Empire.

The scenes had been even more difficult to accept when it soon became clear that the local populations of the new annexed worlds had shown no interest in rising up against the First Order. Their army had driven off the pirates, slavers and other dangers that haunted the space lanes and had allowed the planet to function in peace.

The First Order had established law, order, safety and a sense of purpose. More than that, the previously poor and impoverished worlds had been given the chance for a taste of what they had always wanted; Imperial Majesty.

Kuvira had made it known that all worlds in the First Order were equal and would receive equal standing in the sector council and in the High Command. Unlike with the Republic, there would be no favouritism. As long as they paid the standard tribute to the First Order in the form of wealth, resources or manpower then they would be afforded all the benefits it could provide.

This careful and effective policy that Kuvira had enacted ensured that the conquered worlds remained conquered and pacified as they endeavoured to work towards First Order citizenship status for their world by meeting the expectations.

It was this work that had earned her the nick name; the Great Uniter.

It was this that had made Leia realise something about Kuvira that she wished she had not.

Kuvira generally believed she was doing the right thing. She actually cared about the people of the galaxy and sincerely believed that building the First Order into the new Galactic Empire was the best thing for the people of the galaxy.

She had met many Imperial Moffs, senators, Generals and warlords in her life. They had all claimed to be fighting for the people and for the good of the galaxy. But in the end it was all about securing their own power and position.

In Kuvira that was not the case. She had proven many times over the years that she was willing to die to ensure that her cause gained victory, that it would succeed. She was perfectly willing to declare war, launch unprovoked attacks, pre-emptive strikes, and slaughter on an unimaginable scale to achieve victory.

And she would go to bed with a clear conscious and sleep well each night. Because she genially believed that she was doing the best she could to help people and the galaxy.

That made Leia much more afraid as it meant that she would likely be able to order any action, no matter how horrific to accomplish her aims. In the end she had been proven right with the destruction of Hosnian Prime.

But it also had made her sad to see what Kuvira was behind all the military bearing and cold calculation. She was what she had been so many years ago. A young woman with a vision, a dream that kept her alive and gave her life meaning. A young woman that was desperate to bring her vision of a perfectly ordered and united galaxy united under one banner with one collective will and voice.

It was a dream that Leia could understand. Even if it was the complete antithesis of her own dream of a galaxy that valued the rights of the people over the convenience of the galaxy.

But it also meant that she would have to do all she could to destroy a young woman who was in many ways so much like herself. It was insane to even consider it. But at moments when she had allowed her mind to wonder and the Force to embrace her. She had wondered if the daughter she had always wanted but never had would have been anything life Kuvira?

Naturally she had never paid such delusions anymore mind. But when Han had returned from Starkiller and made his report. She had begun to wonder at the strange relationship he had claimed to witness between Ben and Kuvira.

She had even allowed herself to consider how big the colossal irony would be if…

"General Organa." A voice broke her out of her musings as she realised that Kuvira had decided to end the staring game and begin the conversation.

Leia came back to herself and focused on the only thing she should be thinking about today. Namely, getting her people out of here alive. Making sure the Resistance would live to fight another day.

"Grand Admiral Kuvira." She replied with much the same emotionless tone that Kuvira had opened with. Kuvira nodded in recognition of the greeting. "Why did you hail me?" Leia asked.

Kuvira raised an eyebrow in sarcastic confusion. "Aside from the invitation from your pilot, Dameron?" She asked sarcastically. "I hailed you for the same reason you answered it. Curiosity."

She paused before she continued. "I have always hoped that we could get to talk directly one day. We have fought our shadow war of spies, proxies and politics for many years. We have fought a new and more open war since Hosnian Prime. But we have never actually spoken a single world to each other."

Leia nodded as she allowed herself a small mournful smile. "I doubt that a friendly chat between us would have made much difference."

Kuvira nodded as her face remained set in stone. "Maybe so. But I have been pleasantly surprised in the past. Not often, but sometimes." She said calmly before continuing. "General Organa, I know you are no fool. So, you know you cannot win this battle." She stated as a simple fact.

Leia could not deny the accusation but she needed to play for time so the transports could reach the Raddus. The hyperspace coordinates for a rendezvous point was already selected and entered into the nav computer. The engines were primed and ready. As soon as the transports were on board the Raddus they would punch it and jump out of the system.

Until then she just needed to by some time. "I have heard similar words from Tarkin, Vader and even the Emperor. We still defeated them. What makes you think we can't do the same here?" She asked in a tone that was a mix of mocking and sarcastic confusion.

"In fact, I am willing to guess that you never though a small group of fighters would take down your own planetary superweapon?" She said snidely.

Kuvira regarded her with what seemed to be disappointment. "I was hoping you of all people would have a better response then to reference old and now irrelevant battles. But since you seem unable or more likely unwilling to see the truth I will elaborate." She said in the tone of a teacher lecturing a rebellious student.

"Your fleet (and I use that word generously) is ramshackle at best. Your three other ships are lightly armed and are for support use in the medical and transportation fields. They are no match for our fleet and even one Resurgent class star destroyer would be enough to sweep them aside."

"Your flagship is the only vessel capable of mounting a sufficient opposition and you are currently hopelessly outmatched with no hope of reinforcement. The New Republic is decapitated, with what little leadership it still has in a state of flux with no clear chain of command or even a centralised government to conduct your affairs.

"You have no support from the New Republic military which is now vastly outmatched in terms of numbers and technology. What little forces that remain are scattered across many distant and largely irrelevant worlds. They are also being attacked by the other First Order fleets even as we speak, key planets are being targeted and have probably already fallen."

"Meanwhile the hyperspace routes, such as the Hydian way have already been claimed and we have effective control over the flow of vital goods and raw materials between the Core and everything past the mid rim. We can choke off all economic movement and sent planets into economic collapse virtually at our will. If planets resist us we do not even need to attack them. We will simply starve them into submission."

"Lastly we have more supporters across the galaxy then you might want to admit General. The New Republic did not do much too endear itself to the populace and in my opinion the only thing that ensured it lasted as long as it did was nostalgia and war weariness. That time has passed. Now we are in a position to reclaim the galaxy under our banner and we have millions of people who are willing to help us accomplish and maintain this." She finished with her voice never once changing from its calm analytical tone.

"General I know that you and your followers take great pride in your 'hope' but hope alone cannot change reality. After that it simply becomes self-delusion." She summarised. "And to believe that you can win in spite of all I have said and more. That simply stretches plausibility too far." She finished with great gravity in her voice.

She intended for the sheer insanity of a Resistance victory to be made clear both to her own fleet and to the Resistance command who were all listening intently to the conversation between the General and the Grand Admiral.

There was a reason propaganda was as effective in war as actual weapons. A soldier who had the best weapons, armour and skill was nothing if they did not believe that they could win the fight. Very few people after all were willing to sacrifice their life in a pointless and futile battle.

Leia considered the matter for a moment before she made her response. "You make a very good case Grand Admiral. If I saw the galaxy with such cold calculation as you I might be inclined to agree with you. But I have watched the unexpected happen in the past. On Yavin and on Endor. One small minuscule change altered the course of the galaxy. With all that I have seen, I do not see our cause as defeated. I see it as a rebirth." She said with a confident sad smile that Kuvira could not help but find aggravating.

"Besides, we are not so out gunned and out matched as you seem to think, Grand Admiral. The Force is with…." She said until Kuvira silenced her with a wave of her hand.

"Spare me the talk of the Force, General I have no interest in it! I am only concerned with matters related to this plane of existence. And I can promise you that the Force will not save you if the ships you are standing in are reduced to molten slag under our guns." Kuvira bit out in tired annoyance. "I am willing to offer you and your people fair and reasonable terms of surrender. If you care at all for the lives of your people you will listen to them. If not we can commence battle right now."

There was a pause for a moment. Broken only by the wiring and being of the droids in the Raddus main command bridge. After a few moments that felt like eons. Leia raised an eyebrow at that sudden outburst from the Grand Admiral.

While Kuvira's face had not changed and her voice had not risen too much she had noticed a change in her when she had interrupted her when she mentioned the Force. The change was not physical, Kuvira was too disciplined and controlled for that.

No, the change had come to her through the Force. A sudden spike of energy, to sharp and so intense that it had forced its way into her perception. The spike was only there for a second before it vanished as Kuvira got her emotion under control. But it had lasted long enough for Leia to recognise what it was.

Rage. Hate and sheer revulsion.

And then it was gone. As if it had never been there at all.

Leia was stunned. She had heard various rumours that unlike Snoke, his acolytes and …Kylo Ren. Kuvira distained the use of the Force or the idea of relaying on it instead of tactical and scientific resources. She had learned that Kuvira placed much less emphasis on destroying Luke then she did about the invasion of the New Republic.

Too her it was as if destroying Luke and the Jedi was a vague after thought. But she had never heard anything that suggested she held such animosity to the Force itself.

She could understand it on some level. Many Imperial, Rebel and Republic officers and leaders regarded the Force as superstitious magic tricks at worst. Unpredictable and unreliable energies at best.

But what she had felt from Kuvira was not simple apathy, it was sheer loathing!

Before she could dwell on this matter further she realised she needed to respond to the threat before Kuvira grew tired of this and fired. Besides, she just needed to by a bit more time for all the transports to make it to the Raddus. Then get Poe and the bomber and fighter squadrons back aboard the ship as fast as possible.

With that in mine, offered her answer. "What terms would you offer to us Grand Admiral. I have no intention of simply turning over my people to the First Order's tender mercies without some guarantee of their well treatment."

If Kuvira was surprised by the seeming willingness to consider surrender from the proud Alderaanian princess, she hid it well. Far better than most of the Raddus bridge crew would have if they did not know that this was just an effort to buy time.

Kuvira considered for a moment before beginning her list of demands. "Firstly, you will power down all weapons, engines and let your ships drift." She demanded.

"Second you will order your forces to drop their weapons, disarm their security systems and wait where they are for our troops to arrive to take them into custody. If they offer no resistance I give you my word they will not be harmed. If they attack us or fight back we will use lethal force."

"Thirdly. You will send communications across to your cells and allies across the galaxy notifying them of your surrender and commanding them to stand down." The list continued.

The Resistance members on the bridge were having a hard time believing it.

The plan was actually going to work. Grand Admiral Kuvira, supposedly the greatest military mind of the age was being fooled and had been tricked into monologing. All they needed was for her too keep rambling on while the First Order fleet remained idle.

Then they would have all their personnel in the ships and could jump out of this system to safety. The fighter squadrons could follow them into Hyperspace of course. The bombers might be a problem. But the point was that the Resistance would escape and live to fight another day!

"Fourthly, your pilot Poe Dameron will order his little bomber squadron to power down their engines, disarm their magnetic bombs and turn off their woefully inadequate engine bafflers. They will not be making an attack run any time soon." Kuvira said her tone suddenly sober and alert, instead of the monotonous tone she had used while reciting her demands.

Leia stiffened. As did all the bridge crew on the Raddus command deck. For a moment no sound was heard except the sudden intake of breath in the members of the Resistance command as they momentarily allowed their shock and horror to get the best of them.

Leia's eyes darted from the hologram of Kuvira to study the tactical read out of the forces in the planets orbit. Even as she turned her head to watch, she saw the flood of data representing the First Order TIE fighters shoot forward on an attack vector. They were clearly heading at the transports and at Poe's bomber and fighter squadrons that they had considered invisible to the First Order sensors.

She turned her stricken gaze back to Kuvira, who had a look of knowing intent across her otherwise impassive face.

The entire time that the conversation had been taking place between the Grand Admiral and the General. Leia had displayed herself as a fully imaged life-sized hologram. In that same time, she had never asked herself why Kuvira had displayed her hologram image so that it displayed everything above the torso region.

The Resistance had simply assumed that was how she wanted to depict herself or how she had set her holocams for no greater reason.

But that was far from the truth.

The entire time Kuvira had been talking to Leia. She had her hands clasped behind her back in her typical at ease stance. The Resistance not thought this out of the ordinary. Afterall they had seen Kuvira take this stance many times in holograms and recordings. It was her preferred stance when she was not talking to her soldiers or trying to rally her followers.

But the main reason she had not allowed her hands to be seen. Was that while they were clasped behind her as she spoke to Leia. Her hands had been in constant motion as they gave off a multitude of signals and gestures that almost looked like they were undergoing some kind of spasm.

But the First Order officers could see it for what it was. Galactic basic in sign language.

It was a form of communication that was not often used as it was difficult across a galaxy with multiple species. Some of which did not have arms, much less the same number of digits.

But all the officers of the First Order had been instructed in its use for just this kind of occasion, when distraction and secrecy was needed. The fact that (for the moment) all officers of the First Order were near human, if not human. Made its widespread use and application much simpler.

And the bridge crew of the Reclaimer had been able to interpret and carry out her orders with perfect clarity.

As Leia watched. Poe was forced to cancel the charge up routines on his fighter's new turbo engine booster and take evasive action as he fled back to the fighter squadrons. Meanwhile the Resistance fighters moved forward to engage the First Order TIE's and to protect the bombers that were breaking formation as their ambush was discovered.

"Do you truly think so little of me, General" Kuvira said as Leia turned back to her. "That I would be so easily fooled into allowing you and your Resistance time to evacuate and escape by your obviously fake surrender? The day General Leia Organa surrenders without a fight is the day that the Hutts become altruistic charity organisations." Kuvira said scornfully.

She generally did seem offended that Leia Organa (a rival she respected) thought she was that gullible.

Leia glared back at the younger woman in anger and dismay at the turn of events. "Then why did you bother talking at all? You could have simply ordered your forces to attack as soon as you entered the system." She demanded.

Kuvira paused as if she was debating whether or not to answer. Then she explained. "Three reasons."

"First, I held out hope that you might see reason and end this pointless struggle before more lives were lost to it. I knew that was very unlikely, but I felt it was worth the effort."

"Second, while I felt confident that you would remain. I could not take the chance that you would leave the evacuation incomplete and abandon your remaining followers to escape into hyperspace. It would have been the logical and tactical thing to do. But for all your virtues and skills General. You do not have the strength of character necessary to sacrifice your own people to achieve success. I felt confident you would remain, but I could not take that chance. So, I needed to distract you, even as you tried to distract me." Kuvira elaborated as the bridge crew of the Raddus glared hatefully at her.

"And thirdly, I needed time for the Fulminatrix's auto cannons to be fully charged to punch through your flagships protype shields and be guaranteed to destroy the ship in one blow." Kuvira finished flatly as the Raddus crew looked at each other in quickly mounting horror.

"You needed time for your evacuation. I needed time to launch my attack. We both needed to buy time General. The difference is I did not need as much as you." Kuvira bowed her head as she finished speaking.

A gesture of respect? Of mourning?

Whatever it was her hologram faded from the Raddus as she turned to Captain Peavey.

"Order Captain Canady to lock on to the primary target and fire immediately!"

 **Authors Note**

 **Hope you enjoyed this chapter. Sorry for the delay. For some reason I found this chapter really hard to write. Only could churn out a few hundred words a day. Anyway, next is the Battle of D'qar.**

 **See you then.**


	24. Chapter 24 - The Battle of D'Qar: Part 1

**Sage-Faerie of The Marsh: Thanks for your review. Like you I found that in many cases the First Order was seen as a comedic enemy rather then an enemy to be feared. It was as if they were trying to add Resistance quips and jokes with their incompetence and Hux's failures. That might have been funny but it diminishes the moment and ruins any respect for either side if they can't be taken seriously. I agree that Leia was never my favourite character either. She was always to preachy and arrogant for my tastes. Also, she was seeming unwilling to acknowledge that the rebels had equal fault in this war. One comic put summarised it very nicely.**

' _ **I will not make your hubristic mistake that puts vain idealism above the lives of those who depend on us. Shu-Torun will never be another Alderaan.'**_

 **Anyway, I hope you enjoy the new chapter and see you next time.**

 **TishaLiz: Thanks for the review as always. I am glad you liked the conversation between Leia and Kuvira. Like you said it was difficult when you have two similar let very different enemies talking for the first time. It is a scene that demands a lot of drama and emotion to it and is hard to write sometimes. I am glad you agree with my description of Poe as an idiot. I know a large part of the new trilogy is the new generation of heroes and villains taking over from the previous one. And there is an understandable learning curve and character development. But you do not get to act like an idiot when you are fighting for your life in a war.**

 **Lady Syndra: Thanks for your review. I am glad you like the information about Kuvira's past and activities as the Great Uniter. I have added a large section of this chapter to just that and I really hope you enjoy it and the world building side of it.**

 **Digital hell 12: Thanks for your review. I hope you like the new chapter as well.**

 **Idontknoworcareanymore: Thanks for the review. Yeah, I have had that error pointed out to me before. It is partially me and partially the auto-correct. Most the time the auto-correct just assumes what the word is and changes it without me knowing. Sometimes I select the correction but just select the first option as I am on a role with the writing. Anyway, I will try to avoid that mistake in the future.**

 **Kai: Thank you for the review. I always enjoy seeing that someone enjoys the story and it inspires me to update again soon. I hope you enjoy this next chapter.**

 **Guest: Thank you for the review. I hope you will enjoy the next scene and the answer to you question about the Raddus.**

 **2nd Guest: Thank you for the review. You pose a very good theory for the outcome of the battle. I won't spoil anything just yet and I hope you enjoy this chapter as much.**

 **Yagami Kuzuki: Thank you for your review. It always means a lot to me too know that people really enjoy my fanfic and it was very nice to read your compliments. If you have any suggestions for the story please let me know. In the meantime, please enjoy the next chapter.**

 **Christinedbadia: Thanks again for the review. I hope you enjoyed our small discussion about Kuvira and the Halo universe on the private messenger. I hope you will enjoy the new chapter.**

 **Master Skywalker: Thanks for your review. In answer to your question. Yes, Tam will feature in this story as new secondary character. She will not have a definitive role just yet as realistically she had no military training. But once a reasonable time has passed, she will be active in battle and will become a protégé for Kuvira in the way that she initially wanted Rey to become. Like you she is one of my favourite characters in the Star Wars universe. We see so many Imperial defections etc that it is great to finally see someone go the other way. Also, it shows us that the people who fight for the First Order can be good people who generally believe they are in the right.**

 **ChaosStar44: Thanks for the review. I am glad you enjoyed the story so much and I hope you blow through this new chapter just as well.**

 **Chapter 24 – The Battle of D'Qar**

 **D'Qar – The Fulminatrix Command Bridge**

 **Captain Canady - POV**

Captain Canady had been an Imperial his entire life. He had been born in the waning days of the Republic and had been a young boy when the Republic had claimed victory in the Clone Wars and became the Galactic Empire.

He had immediately been enthralled with the idea of serving the Empire. Of bringing order and peace to a war-torn galaxy. Of making sure that nothing like the Clone Wars would ever happen again. Especially after seeing how much it had made his parents and extended family and friends suffer.

At the first chance he got he had joined the Imperial Academy and had eventually gone on to be promoted to the rank of Captain. He had then been given one of the Empire's highest honours and had been placed as the commander of the Star Destroyer Solicitude of the Imperial Starfleet.

It had been the proudest moment of his life.

But then the Rebellion had spun out of control and with the death of the Emperor, the fall of Coruscant and the defeat at the battle of Jakku. He had been sure that the dream was dead. That the Empire he had served and loved all his life had been destroyed by terrorists, naive idealists and simple anarchists.

He had been sitting in his captain's cabin sitting on his bed. Staring at his captain's imperial issue blaster, trying to steel his nerves as he prepared to put a blaster bolt in his temple. Afterall he had never married and had no living family any longer. The friends he had were in the Imperial fleet and they were either dead, captured or had turned traitor to save themselves.

He had given his entire life to the Empire and the Imperial navy and he had no wish to live past either of them.

But in that moment as he began to raise the blaster, his personal commlink had activated with a priority message on the top-secret Imperial High Command frequency. Only Admirals, Moffs and select Imperial Governors had access to that frequency.

When he had activated his comm he had found a simple message followed by coordinates. The coordinates led to a location in the Unknown Regions of all things. With commands to assemble all his remaining forces and head for the rendezvous point. The message was a cryptic message that the contingency was in effect and to follow the instructions to the letter for the preservation of the Empire.

For a long while Canady had simply stared at his commlink in one hand and his blaster in the other. He had been almost certain at the time that the message was either a fake or was a rebel plot to lure the rest of the Imperial fleet into a trap so they could destroy them in the dark and forbidding Unknown regions.

The thought of dying alone and un-mourned in the Unknown Regions from a Rebel ambush was a thought he did not want to consider for an instant.

But after a long while, he had given the order to prepare all their forces to jump to those coordinates. He had figured that if there was a chance to save the Empire, he would take it. And if it was a rebel trap, he would rather die in battle and killing as many of those traitors as possible before he died.

But in the end his decision had been vindicated. He had met up with all the remaining Imperial fleets and their armies. They had amassed into a huge armada in the safety of the Unknown Regions.

At first, he had been certain the plan was for them all to coalesce into one single massive force and return to the known galaxy to descend on the rebels like a meteor strike. Surely with this much amassed power they could retake Coruscant and maybe even shatter the newly increased Rebel fleet.

But he had soon been informed that their purpose was not to return to the known galaxy. At least not yet. They would lay the foundations of a new Empire in the Unknown Regions, which thanks to the Emperor's eternal wisdom had been seeded with bases, supply depos and construction yards years ago.

He had been told that they would begin the Empire anew in the Unknown Regions, slowly gathering their strength and increasing their numbers as the Rebels inevitably grew divided and indolent with their assumed victory. And then one day they would return to exact their vengeance and then they would once again rule the galaxy.

Exactly as they were meant to.

And so, his service with the First Order began.

It was years later when he was first introduced to (then) Captain Kuvira. He had been attending a sector command meeting when she had been introduced by Grand Admiral Rae Sloane as the newest addition to their ranks and Captain of the new Resurgent Class Destroyer Reclaimer, apparently named by her personally.

At first, he had been deeply unimpressed. This young woman of roughly twenty years old was now a Captain?! At an age when most Imperial service men and women were lucky to reach the rank of Lieutenant! It had actually been the moment when he was unsure if the First Order was turning into a worthy successor to the Empire if this was now, they chose to administer their fleet.

But Captain Kuvira had simply taken her seat and had remained quiet throughout the rest of the meeting. He had allowed her some respect as she clearly knew to listen to her superiors with greater experience.

In fact, Kuvira had not uttered a single word at the sector command meetings (except when asked a direct question) for nearly a year.

It was only during their campaign against the fiercely stubborn Demirian nation that she had offered her first suggestion in council.

Their fleet had been preparing to move on the Demirian fortress world, known as the 'Iron Planet'. Admiral Nelix would command their fleet in attacking the planetary defence force and once orbit had been secured Captain Cardinal and Captain Phasma would oversee the stormtrooper core in the planetary invasion.

The meeting seemed firm in their course of action until Captain Kuvira had cleared her throat and requested to speak before the military council.

He remembered that day so clearly

(flashback)

 _Grand Admiral Rae Sloane turned to regard the young woman. "Captain, you have something to add to this discussion." She asked pointedly._

 _Captain Kuvira nodded as she called up a map of the system and sector with the Demirian homeworlds behind the Iron Planet fortress. "Forgive me Grand Admiral, but I must state that attacking the Demirian where they are dug in and ready is a plan that should only be taken if there is no alternative."_

 _Admiral Nelix had clearly taken offence at his plan being called into question by a lowly captain. "Do you doubt the validity of my plan Captain. Or the competence of the First Order Stormtrooper core?" He demanded in a tone that dared her to respond negatively._

 _Captain Kuvira looked at her superior with her calm expression. "Not at all, Admiral. I am confident that our brave soldiers will fight and if necessary die to secure victory for the First Order. I am simply suggesting that they will suffer heavy causalities which can and should be avoided if possible."_

 _Nelix scoffed. "And how would you suggest we accomplish this Captain. By asking them to surrender politely?" He mocked as a few council members snickered at the jape._

 _Kuvira made no acknowledgement of the joke at her expense. "Naturally not, Admiral. After all the Demirian are a fiercely independent and militarily focused people. Not unlike ourselves. They will not surrender unless given proper incentive. But this can be accomplished without a costly battle." She said as she pulled up the map to enhance the relevant systems._

" _Consider, the Demirian have amassed the vast majority of their forces at the Iron Planet as it is on the only stable hyperspace link to their home systems. It is the natural choke point to their strategic defence. If we attack directly into the teeth of their defences, we will pay a heavy price indeed."_

 _She then indicated the Demirian Home systems behind their defensive lines. "But in so doing, they have left their Homeworlds exposed and stripped of all their defences. They are confident they cannot be attacked without our success at the Iron planet."_

 _At this point Canady himself spoke up. "Come to the point Captain, you have already said that there are no other stable hyperspace lanes into the Demirian systems which is why we are forced to attack them at the Iron planet. So, what is your suggestion to avoid this costly attack and secure victory?" He asked with exasperation._

 _Kuvira nodded and elaborated. "In my dealings with the Chiss Ascendancy I have learned of another hyperspace lane which doesn't currently exist on our naval maps. This hyperspace lane is not completely stable, but it is able to be navigated by the Chiss and I believe we can modify our nav computers to safely traverse it. If we do this, we will be able to attack the Demirian home systems virtually unopposed."_

 _As she talked a new section of the map lit up in the image of a hyperspace line that bypassed the Iron planet and carried its way into the Demirian heartlands._

" _This weakness in the military campaign is also one that has become embedded in their own psyche over the generations as their faith the Iron Planet and the sole hyperspace lane has caused them to refute any other potential defensive strategy. At this point no Demirian can imagine their homeworlds being attacked from behind in their worst nightmares. We will take advantage of their singular mindedness and split their focus at a critical point."_

 _As she spoke icons representing fleet movements appeared. "We can cripple their civilian and military leadership. Cut off supplies to their main army and more importantly we can deal that army a crippling blow. Many of their soldiers and commanders will not be so willing to stand and fight while their homes and families burn behind them. This will weaken or possibly cripple the Iron Planet to the point when resistance is impossible. We can claim victory by simply side stepping their entire military strategy." She summarised._

 _Silence had reigned for a few moments before the entire council erupted into debate. Some praising the plan, others condemning it as folly._

 _In the end Grand Admiral Sloane had silenced them and gave her verdict. "We will enact Captain Kuvira's plan. We have a chance to win a virtually bloodless victory and we cannot ignore that." But then she turned to Kuvira with a sharp expression. "But your ship will be the first one to use this 'unstable' hyperspace lane Captain. If you are determined to carry out this strategy you will be willing to act as scout for it." She said in a tone that brooked no interruption._

 _Kuvira nodded her acceptance. "Naturally, Grand Admiral. Thank you for indulging my plan." She said with no hint of satisfaction in her face or her eyes._

 _(flashback ends)_

The campaign had been an unmitigated success.

The hyperspace lane had delivered their fleet to the Demirian homeworlds. Deprived of their defences for the iron planet the planets had fallen within days.

The Demirian army on the Iron planet had fragmented as soldiers deserted to return home enmasse to learn what had happened to their loved ones. The generals had refused to allow it and a mini civil war had erupted on the world as the defending army divided between hardliners and would be deserters.

After that Grand Admiral Sloane had kept Kuvira close by her side.

It was faith that was well rewarded as the years went past and Kuvira was the mind behind many victories, both conventional and otherwise. So many that when she was promoted to Commodore and later to Admiral. Captain Canady could not find it in himself to disagree.

His own service had been well rewarded. While he had not risen above the rank of Captain he had never aspired to higher command. He preferred the more active middle ranks. But he had been rewarded with command of the Fulminatrix, one of the most powerful ships in existence.

He had found it hard at times to obey a woman less than half his age. But with Kuvira he had simply been forced to admit that some were destined for greatness while others must content themselves with useful mediocrity.

Which is why he now found himself standing on the bridge of his prized dreadnaught as he waited for the news from his bridge crew. "Are the auto cannons primed?"

His lieutenant Goneril responded promptly. "Primed and ready, sir." He said with eagerness that was barely suppressed.

Canady allowed a small amount of satisfaction to creep into his voice as he gave the order. "What are we waiting for? Fire on the base!" he barked.

Outside the auto cannons unleashed a quadruple blast of pure ionised fire down on the surface of D'Qar as they streaked to the Resistance base from the sky like the fury of some wrathful deity. The planetary shield was no match for the attack and the energy blasts punched their way past the barrier with ease. The Resistance base erupted into fire and light as the last Resistance transport just barely cleared the blast radius.

Even from space the destruction was obvious as the blast through dirt, lava and all manner of planetary substances high into the atmosphere as the mushroom cloud continued to expand over a huge blast zone that had never been equalled since the Death Star at Jedha.

The jungle around the blast zone was in flames and even as they watched the blazing fires of destruction began to spread away from the central blast zone. The Resistance base on D'Qar had been completely annihilated so utterly an observer in a few years would be hard pressed to know that any form of civilisation had ever existed there at all.

Captain Canady looked on at the destruction of the Resistance base with supreme satisfaction as he knew that the Resistance had just been uprooted from their lair like the weeds that they were. He was so busy admiring the destruction wrought on their enemies by his ship that he almost did not notice the blue hologram appear on the central bridge communication projector.

He turned and saw the blue flickering image of Grand Admiral Kuvira. He went to parade rest as he prepared to receive the congratulations on the destruction of the Resistance base and his next firing orders.

But then he caught sight of the Grand Admiral's eyes and his entire frame seemed to slack as he noticed her eyes as she regarded him.

Grand Admiral Kuvira was famous for her passive and calm demeanour regardless of the situation around her. It was only by her eyes that she allowed any of her true feelings to be seen. They could be confident and reassuring and they could be had chips of emerald that seemed to pierce your soul as she regarded you like a hunted animal.

Right now, they were blazing emerald flames as she looked at Canady as if he had just tried to assassinate her. Her face was expressionless but there was no missing the way her jaw was set. It implied that she was biting her tongue to prevent words spewing forth. Or she was grinding her teeth together in sheer fury.

Canady immediately snapped to attention as he felt his heart begin to quicken as he waited for the Grand Admiral to speak and explain what he had done to enrage her.

His bridge crew immediately noticed their captains fear and all either focused on their work harder then before or snapped to attention as well. The entire bridge had suddenly become as silent as the grave. Canady just hoped that would not prove to be prophetic.

Kuvira had banned summary executions without trial within the First Order years ago. But that did not mean that he necessarily was safe.

After a few seconds Kuvira spoke. And when she did her voice was so cold Canady felt as if someone had shoved an ice spike into his gut.

"Captain Canady. You will report to me after this battle and I expect you to present me with a reason why you chose to fire on an abandoned and useless Resistance base instead of their command ship. The command ship that currently contains their leadership and is their main way out of this system. The command ship with the shields that only your autocannons can penetrate and leave their other ships defenceless. And I expect that reason to be based on phenomenally good military tactical sense." Kuvira ground out as she visibly restrained her outrage at the Fulminatrix's actions.

"In the interval you will recharge your cannons and you will aim them at the Raddus with all possible speed. The second they reach full charge you will fire them and end this farce. Are my instructions clear Captain?" She asked with all the friendliness of a Rathtar.

Canady nodded as he realised the depths of his mistake.

Now that it was actively mentioned, it did seem like an incredibly stupid thing to have done. Instead of ordering his ship to destroy the Raddus and cripple the entire Resistance in one blow he had ordered them to fire on an empty base that might have even contained some salvable intelligence in its computer data banks.

But now that base with the possibly useful data was lost and the entire compound was now nothing but smouldering atoms. Meanwhile the Resistance fleet was getting closer and closer to jumping into Hyperspace and escaping the battlefield.

Canady clenched his knuckles so heard he was certain the skin on his palms was bleeding. If he had been in private, he would have cursed himself for being such a fool!

It was a tactical mistake that a first-year ensign would have been hard pressed to make, and he had now been rebuked by the Grand Admiral in front of his entire crew. And rightly so!

He forced himself to focus. He could not undo his mistake. The best he could do was amend it by having the autocannons destroy the Raddus as soon as possible with their second shot. He could only hope that would be enough to mollify Grand Admiral Kuvira.

If not, the best he could hope for would be demotion so that he spent the rest of his life as the captain of a cargo frigate.

Grand Admiral Kuvira was a remarkably fair commander to work under.

She was smart and subtle, but she never used those abilities to show up or humiliate anyone. She demanded results, but never perfection. And she had amazing stores of patience for those who were truly working to their fullest ability.

She cared about her people. To the point of standing up for them even against the disapproval of powerful individuals like the former General Hux or even Kylo Ren.

But she did not tolerate those who were lazy or who wasted her time. Or who were simply uninterested in giving their very best for the First Order. Such dead weights had been disposed of long ago, usually to very unpleasant and unimportant roles within the First Order military.

In some cases, they had been sentenced to a military court-marshal. If they had committed truly grave offenses, such as acts of cowardice or sheer idiocy. Those court-marshals had sentenced them to a swift and public execution at the hands of the punishment troopers.

Canady was already starting to wonder if his long military career would soon reach its conclusion at the end of a laser axe.

That thought alone was enough to jolt him into action. "Recharge the autocannons. Target their main cruiser!" He ordered. More harshly then he had intended. But he felt that his life was now securely tied to the fate of the Resistance command ship. One of them would survive this day and he was very determined to make sure it was him.

 **Kuvira - POV**

Grand Admiral Kuvira stood as still as carbonite on the bridge of the Reclaimer as she watched the autocannons begin their painfully slow process of re-aiming themselves at the Raddus after blowing the Resistance base to hell.

Her crew was wise enough to not disturb her as she watched the procedure. They had all heard her words to Captain Canady and they all could recognise that the Admiral wanted to have silence for a moment while she collected herself.

She was furious.

Furious at Canady for making such a short-sighted mistake that could cost them everything. Furious at Hux for allowing Starkiller to be disabled or this world would have been ash long ago.

But she was furious at herself as well.

In all her orders and planning, she had referred to the Raddus simply as the 'primary target'. She had never felt the need to elaborate as she had simply assumed it was obvious that the Raddus was infinitely more valuable than an abandoned building.

It had never even occurred to her, that someone might mistake her meaning in the battle plan. And now because of Canady's assumption and her oversight the Resistance could now potentially escape the battlefield.

The evacuation was complete, based on the lack of transports moving from the surface to the Raddus. And even if it had not been the Fulminatrix had just guaranteed that there would not be any further evacuees from the planet. The Raddus was free to depart immediately and with the auto cannons charging they had no way to stop them!

Kuvira forced her roiling emotions aside to allow her to think clearly. The only chance they had to destroy the Raddus was to cripple the engines and their ability to jump to lightspeed. It was unlikely they would succeed in time but it was the only option.

She turned to the comms officer. "Order all fighters to break off their attack on the bombers and to focus all their fire on the Raddus's engines. I want the ship crippled and immobile. They are free to use all their arsenal to accomplish this objective." She paused.

"Launch all the Special Forces TIE fighters, I want them to focus their proton torpedoes on the bombers and on the Raddus's bridge and engines. Do what ever it takes to keep that ship here." She ordered.

"Yes, Grand Admiral." The officer replied as he began to relay the messages to the flight commanders. Kuvira turned back to watch the battle. Hoping that the Resistance would not show basic intelligence and jump out of the system immediately.

 **A** **dmiral Ackbar - POV**

"The last transport is in the air; the evacuation is complete." The voice of Lieutenant Kayden Connix reported over the intercom from the transport that even now was speeding towards the Raddus as it tried to avoid the firefight between the First Order TIE fighters and the Resistance fighter and bomber squadrons.

Admiral Ackbar heaved a sign through his dry gills as he heard that. Now with the evacuation complete they could call the fighters back to the Raddus hanger bay and with the bombers having their own hyperdrives, they could leave this damn place.

Clearly his long-time colleague and friends Leia was of the same opinion as he heard her utter a relived sign as she felt the tension leave her body and an all too rare smile extend across her face. "You did it, Poe. Now get your squad back here so we can get out of this place." She said.

Ackbar nodded in agreement. Personally, he had been fairly certain all of them were about to die on this ship not long ago.

He had served with the Mon Cala defence force and later with the Rebel Alliance and the New Republic for many decades, all the way back to the Clone Wars. He liked to think that his military acumen was quite well honed after all those years.

In that time, he had come to learn many rules and lessons of warfare. One of the most important being the following lesson. 'A good General not only knows the way to victory. They also know when victory is impossible.'

That was the situation he found himself in at the moment.

The Resistance was hopelessly outmatched by the superior numbers and firepower of the First Order. They could not hope to stand against them in a conventional fight without some surprise tactic that they did not possess.

Their only chance for some semblance of victory was to escape from this hopeless situation and live to fight another day.

He was still trying to figure out what had happened over on the First Order fleet.

Grand Admiral Kuvira had clearly intended for the Raddus to be targeted by the dreadnaught's cannons. Her words and mannerisms during her conversations with Leia were evidence enough of that. He had seen the expression on her face that indicted that she was offering her final farewells to people she already considered dead when her hologram faded out.

In truth he had been sure that was the case as well. He knew that they needed more time to complete the evacuation and the Raddus was the only one capable of providing shelter. The other Resistance ships were incapable or were already overcrowded with supplies or people.

He had actually quietly suggested to Leia that they needed to jump the fleet out of the system now whether the evacuation was complete or not. He had reasoned that they could not save the people still on the ground but they could save the Resistance itself.

He knew it was a ruthless decision. But that was why Leia had asked him to join the Resistance in the first place. Ackbar was not a hero or a Jedi, he was a military commander. He would make whatever choices he felt were necessary to achieve victory or at least stave off defeat. If that meant sacrificing soldiers or ordering suicide missions, so be it.

He had argued against the mission to Scariff to obtain the plans for the Death Star, his fellow Mon Cala and (in many ways rival) namesake for the ship he was standing in had ignored him and taken the fleet to battle. He had tried to call a retreat from the battle of Endor once the trap had begun to close on the Rebel fleet. He had no faith in miracles and was only interested in logic.

He was however thankful to be proven wrong.

Just as he had been proven wrong today. For reasons he could not figure out, it seemed as if the First Order had decided to fire on the planetary base rather then the actual fleet.

He was trying to imagine why that had happened. One plausible explanation was that the First Order did not realise how far along the evacuation actually was. They must have thought that the base still contained a sizeable or majority of the Resistance personnel.

That was an answer that made sense but it was tactically flawed. He strongly doubted that Kuvira would make such a mistake based on all he knew of her military record.

Insubordination was also a possibility but Kuvira commanded with firm discipline and by all accounts she had the absolute loyalty of her forces. Right now, he simply did not have the answers to these questions or the time to answer them. Right now, he was just glad he had not been forced to make a difficult decision.

He would always make the tactical decision rather than the moral one or the charismatic one. It had not earned him the deep love of the Rebellion or the Resistance. But it had earned him their respect as one of their most valuable military leaders.

That was why Leia needed him in the Resistance despite his advancing age. She needed him to remind her that to win a war, often hard choices needed to be made.

But he knew that she could not follow his advice. Leia was a competent leader and the heart and soul of the Resistance. But she could not bring herself to abandon those who had followed and trusted her. She loved and protected all of them as if they were her own family and rather give up her own life then see any of them die.

Many saws that as her greatest strength and on some level it was. But to Ackbar it was also a glaring weakness. One that he knew Grand Admiral Kuvira recognised as well.

But thankfully it seemed as if he would not need to press her advice. The evacuation was finished and as soon as the fighters returned to the ship, the fleet and the bombers would jump to lightspeed. D'Qar had been lost but the Resistance would live to carry on the fight.

At least that was his thinking until the response came back over the intercom. "No, General... We can do this. We have... a chance to take down a dreadnought!" Dameron called over the comm as he flew his X-wing through the battlefield and blasted apart another TIE as it sent laser fire through the cockpit of an A-wing and exploded the fighter.

"These things are fleet killers. We can't let it get away!" He cried as he banked his fighter hard and began to call the bomber and fighter squadrons back into formation as the majority of the TIE fighters broke off their attack to swarm over the Raddus and the other Resistance ships.

Ackbar let out the Mon Cala version of a growl, which to humans resembled a deep gurgling. "That was just like Dameron! For all his skill as a pilot and his potential as a leader. He remained and impulsive youth! With too many bad experiences and decisions to go through. Without the time to learn from them!

Such as learning when he was hopelessly outmatched or when he was the hunted, rather than the hunter.

Thankfully Leia (for all her lingering soft heartedness) had had those youthful illusions stripped away from pain and loss long ago. "We need to get the fleet out of here!" She ordered to her stubborn protégé.

Ackbar weighed in with his own voice of reason. "You will never reach the Dreadnaught intact, Commander. It's hull its covered with point target defence cannons, they would blast you and the bombers out of space in moments. Even if you could clear those out, it is protected by a ring of nine intact star destroyers. They would turn the bombers to dust before they even came close to their target." Ackbar groundout as he saw another obstacle to Poe's suicide plan appear on the tactical.

"And they have just launched another wave of TIE fighter's which appear to be heading right for you and us. We have no chance of destroying the Dreadnaught. It is simply too well guarded." He finished as he prayed to the ocean spirits that the stupid boy would listen to reason.

For a moment Dameron was silent, and Ackbar began to feel hopeful that the Commander realised the futility of what he was suggesting.

But that hope was dashed when the squadrons began to move right at the advancing wave of TIE fighters and head straight for the centre of the First Order fleet!

"Poe, what are you doing?! Did you not hear a word we just said?!" Leia called, anger and frustration beginning to creep into her voice.

Poe's response came instantly. "We might not be able to get to the Dreadnaught. But the Reclaimer is right at the front of the fleet formation. If we can destroy it, we can kill Kuvira!" Dameron uttered excitedly, as if he had just learned the secret to the universe.

"Think about it General, we can cripple the First Order in one blow. Without Kuvira their leadership will be crippled! So many planets and people only bow to the First Order because of her. If she is dead the entire First Order could collapse. We can win this war in one stroke!" Dameron shouted as he allowed his excitement to take over.

"Please General, give the order!" He pleaded, but even as he asked the formations were still moving towards to the enemy fleet regardless.

For a moment Ackbar saw something cross Leia's face. Something he recognised as indecision.

Ackbar could certainly understand the temptation. He felt Dameron's prediction was overly optimistic. Even if they did kill Kuvira the First Order would still have Supreme Leader Snoke, Kylo Ren and the rest of the High Command. The First Order would hardly be leaderless.

Still he admitted it would be a very heavy blow to their war campaign and their internal structure. It might even lead to a power struggle between the fleet Admiral's to see who would claim her Grand Admiralty.

That could have far reaching consequences for the First Order. In addition, Poe was right in that many Outer Rim worlds only submitted to the First Order due to Kuvira and her many policy implementations. If she died, her successor might not hold to them and that could be the chance to ferment uprisings on their home territories.

But even as he considered the benefits Ackbar knew it was impossible. They had lost too many fighters and a few bombers from the attack already. They would never get the rest to within striking range of the Reclaimer with the new TIE fighter squadrons in the way

Even if they could, the entire arsenal of the First Order fleet would destroy the bombers in seconds. The bombers had armour plating and shields but nowhere near enough to protect them from direct attacks from even one Resurgent class star destroyer. Let alone nine of them.

'No'. He mentally concluded. Dameron's plan was ambitious and had some merit. But it was simply not viable or had any hope of succeeding baring the unexpected or the miraculous.

He could see that Leia was also reaching the same conclusion. Ackbar was just thankful that Han Solo was still in the medical bay having his injuries treated. He might have actually tried to advocate for Poe's insanity. And he might have somehow been able to persuade Leia to listen.

He had persuaded her to marry him after all. Personally, Ackbar had never understood what she had seen in the man. But that was neither here nor there.

"Disengage now... Commander, that is an order..." Leia began until the intercom when dead as that child Dameron cut the connection as soon as he heard the answer he did not want.

Ackbar's fins tightened and he really wished he was allowed to fire on Dameron's fighter and order the rest back to the fleet. Let Dameron kill himself if he wanted, but Ackbar would have none of it.

"General Organa." He said as he turned to face Leia.

She knew what he wanted without him even needing to elaborate. He wanted her to order the fleet to jump to lightspeed and to leave Dameron to his own devices. His pilots too if they refused to return to the fleet.

Leia looked away in despair as she caught a look at C-3PO standing at the edge of the tactical readout. "Wipe that nervous expression off your face, 3PO." She ordered as she tried to find an outlet for her roiling emotions.

The droid started and turned its frozen features to regard the General. "Oh. Well, I'll certainly try, General. Nervous?" He uttered in what was probably the most organically sarcastic tone Ackbar had ever head the droid utter.

 **Kuvira - POV**

Kuvira watched as her SF TIE fighters shot from their hanger bays and headed straight for the Resistance fleet that was trying desperately to fight of the attacks from the first wave of TIE's. With some precision and careful tactics, the Raddus engines could be crippled to the point when hyperspace would be impossible or simply too risky.

It seemed that the Raddus was waiting for its fighters to return to their hangers before jumping out of the system. As she had previously noted, General Organa did not have the strength of character to sacrifice her followers, even if it was the smart thing to do to achieve victory.

It appeared now that that her stance was about to be put to the test.

The bomber squadrons and their X-Wing and A-Wing escort fighters had broken off from the battle over the fleet and were heading for the First Order's front lines.

"What are they doing?" Captain Peavey asked in confusion. "They cannot possibly think they can take on our fleet with less then a few bombers and a few dozen fighters."

Kuvira did not take her eyes off the transparisteel window but she answered the captain regardless. "You are right Captain. Not even Dameron is so deluded in his own abilities." She said with calm confidence. "He knows he cannot destroy our entire fleet. So, he is trying to take out a single part of it. The one most dangerous to the Resistance. At the same time, he likely feels it is the best option to leave this battle with some measure of victory while inspiring their demoralised followers. Dameron has always been focused on ensuring the Resistance maintains hope and belief. Even at the expense of everything else."

Peavey was silent for a few seconds, before he seemed to understand. "The dreadnaught. He cannot be so stupid to think that he would be able to destroy it. The Fulminatrix is covered in point defence cannons and protected by its fighter contingent. Even if it was not, he would have to pass the defensive line while under constant fire." He exclaimed at this idea. The plan was sheer lunacy.

Kuvira nodded. "I agree captain. But based on their recent shift in trajectory and the fact that their formation is solely dedicated to defence from the front, not the sides. I think Dameron has shown some tactical knowledge and is not aiming for the Fulminatrix. He is targeting the Reclaimer itself. He is targeting us." She explained.

"He is targeting you Grand Admiral." Peavey said before he could stop himself.

Kuvira glanced at him as she turned her head towards him. He eyebrow slightly raised in mild surprise at his comment. "You flatter me, Captain." She said with no visible emotion in her voice. If she was happy or embarrassed by his comment, she made no sign of it.

"Dameron has decided if he cannot destroy the Fulminatrix, then he will attack the next best target. The Reclaimer is at the head of our wedge formation and is the most vulnerable to a head-on attack. If he can destroy the Reclaimer then he will have his show of defiance against he First Order. Only then will his ego allow him to call a retreat from this battle.

Peavey was amazed. "He is willing to risk the entirety of his bomber and fighter squadrons on a suicide mission while the Resistance is moments away from being destroyed by the Fulminatrix's auto-cannons?" He asked in a dumbfounded tone.

Kuvira nodded with a small look of agreement at his tone on her face. "If Dameron were here I am sure he would say that they died as heroes of truth, justice and other such empty phrases. But those are just the words he choses to use instead of what he actually means; collateral-damage." She said with an unmistakable edge of disgust in her voice.

Kuvira would and had sent her soldiers to die in battle. If an officer could not do that then they had no business being in command. But she had always spent her soldiers and her pilots with the attitude of a miser spending credits. She had always known that unlike the Empire, the First Order did not have virtually unlimited resources. They could not avoid to lose valuable and loyal soldiers without good cause.

While she would order her soldiers into battle without hesitation. She would never send them into a battle that they clearly could not win. If she did need to order a suicide mission or a mission that would result in high casualties. She would only do it if there was no other viable option or if it served a greater purpose in their overall campaign.

It was for that reason that she had resurrected the TIE-Defender program in the First Order navy. While the First Order TIE's had been improved with shields and enhanced weaponry over their Imperial counterparts. They had still been lacking a few of the benefits the Defender had been provided with, such as individual hyperdrives.

Using the project as a starting point she had been able to ensure that all First Order TIE's were now as fast, as deadly and as protected as the TIE-Defender (minus the third wing design in favour of the more traditional design).

And it was also this reason that caused her contempt for Dameron to increase. He was willing to sacrifice all his forces. People who relied on their commander to lead them to safety or at least spend their lives wisely. And he was leading them to their deaths for little more then a mission of personal vanity.

Clearly Dameron still had much to learn regarding the true burdens and duties of command. So, it fell to Kuvira to teach them to him.

And she would be extremely forceful in her methods.

"All forward cannon batteries open fire on the advancing bombers. Signal the Strikefast, the Defiance, the Allegiance and the Temperance to fire all cannons at their flanks. I want the ventral cannons for all five of the forward Star destroyers to be primed and aimed at their bombers. We cannot let them drop their payload. The bombs from even one of them would be enough to cripple or maybe even destroy a star destroyer." She ordered as the messages were relayed by the bridge crew and the cannons moved into firing position and took aim at the approaching enemies.

"Order Alpha squadron to launch and to take position beneath the Reclaimer. They will wait there until they receive further orders." She added.

She briefly considered ordering that Tamara be placed in a TIE fighter and sent into the battle. After all she had been an experienced and mostly successful racer in her past. The records collaborated her story on this fact earlier. If she was going to be a pilot in the First Order in a time of war. They would need to know what she was capable of in combat.

But she quickly dismissed the idea. Putting a racer into a combat situation with no training and in an unfamiliar ship was ludicrous and would result in nothing but the loss of a hopefully talented fighter with a bright career in front of her in the First Order.

She would begin her training soon. But they would star with simple flight patrols first after some basic instruction.

"should I inform Alpha Squadron that you will be joining them, Grand Admiral?" Peavey asked.

Kuvira shook her head. As much as she would love to be in her own TIE interceptor and fighting beside her pilots. She had her place on the bridge and did not intend to leave it. "No, I will remain on the bridge. Tell them that I have every confidence in their abilities to complete the mission independently." She said.

She regarded the chrono on her wrist as she calculated how much more time was needed to fully charge the auto-cannons.

'Just a little bit longer. And this war is over.'

 **Authors Note**

 **Thanks, as always for reading. Please read and Review as it always inspires me to update soon.**

 **In addition, if anyone has not seen Star Wars Resistance yet I would recommend it as it is a good series and I think it does a lot to explore the Resistance and the First Order more fully in the galaxy. I have attached the link to the new trailer if anyone is interested.**

 _ **watch?v=K4YXz-Ik9OU &list=LLfuZM_1NKcQvWC8u8UmIynQ&index=2&t=2s**_

 **See you next time.**


	25. Chapter 25 - The Battle of D'Qar: Part 2

**SippyCup: Thanks for your review. I agree that is a definite truth. My problem is that unlike the rest of the Star Wars movies that span years. The new trilogy so far takes place across a few days. Two weeks at most. This makes it hard to effect real changes. Still we have some profound ones. Hux is gone, Han is still alive, Kylo Ren and Kuvira as well as his commitment to the dark side and the inclusion of Tam to name a few. Still if you can suggest any changes you feel would work please let me know.**

 **Idontknoworcareanymore: Thank you for the review. It is always great to hear that someone enjoys the story. Hope you like the new chapter.**

 **C.E.W: Thank you for your review. I really enjoyed reading all your points about the characters. In regards to Poe it seems to me that a lot of his actions in the movies stem from a believe in his own invincibility, desperation and the inability to commit to a plan that he does not personally agree with. That is why he remains a flight jockey rather then a true leader or even a soldier. His challenge to Kuvira is due to his personal emotional need for a victory and a need for action rather than planning. If that behaviour is going to be burned away it will be with harsh lessons.**

 **With Leia I admit that I have never liked her personally. I have always felt that she is willing to do anything to achieve her aims even if it means plunging the galaxy into war. I also feel that she constantly places her vain ideals over the lives of actual people. If it was not for her or her father Alderaan would still be around. That being said I to take your point about how the New Republic's weakness is not directly her fault and that Mon Mothma was an even greater idealistic idiot blind to reality.**

 **And for Kuvira herself, I am glad you picked up on those flaws. It is important to right an OC character like an actual person and that includes strengths and weaknesses. Often OC's are too perfect morally or too empowered with no blind spots.**

 **Her tactical skill is great and so is her leadership ability. But she can be vulnerable because she expects her subordinates to follow her orders. In addition, she sometimes fails to realise that others might not look at a battle plan and see what she sees. Whereas Thrawn was always ready and expecting to explain himself. Kuvira does not feel the need. Unfortunately, that can be a problem. As for her weakness regarding the Jedi and the Force. That will be expanded on in later chapters.**

 **TishaLiz: Thank you for the review as always. I always look forward to reading them after the chapter is uploaded. I am very flattered with your comment about the script writers. Like you I guess the casino planet gave us some harsh background on the galaxy. But it was a rather strange side story. I hope you enjoy this chapter as much as the others.**

 **ChaosStar44: Haha I really enjoyed reading your small trailer presentation speech. I am not a fan of plot armour. And while I do need to employ someone it. It will be now where near the same level as the movies. I hope you like it.**

 **Graymar1: Thank you for your review. I am glad you chose to continue reading after the first few chapters. I was still unsure of how I was going to present the story when they were uploaded. In regard to your request for a Star Wars Resistance side story set in this fanfic. I have really been tempted to do just that. I already have a basic plot in mind. My main problem is the timing needed to write it. Plus, I have never liked how people write multiple stories at once and take ages to get back to them. Still I will keep what you have said in mind. About your point about more First Order nonhumans. I will look for opportunities to incorporate them.**

 **AWriter159: Thank you very much for your review. I was very glad to read it as I was working on this chapter. I am glad you like Kuvira's character. I hope that while I cannot but her in the films you will enjoy the rest of the story.**

 **Chapter 25 – The Battle of D'Qar part 2**

 **D'Qar – Space Battle**

 **Poe Dameron – POV**

Poe pressed the trigger button on his x-wing joystick and watched with grim satisfaction as the red energy blasts erupted from the four wing cannons and crashed into the TIE fighter that had been trying to evade him.

The fighter took a direct hit to the wing connection between the cockpit and the right solar panel wing. The blast sheered the panel clean off as the fighter went spinning into the melee, helpless and doomed.

Tali and Stark flew past him as they drove off another TIE squadron that was peppering one of the Resistance bombers with laser fire. "We are not going to get old out here Poe!" Tali warned in a semi-serious tone that did not filly hide the strain of their situation. "Give us some good news."

"Hold formation, we are almost there." Poe called back as he dodged out of the way of an exploding fighter. Whether the newly deceased fighter had been Resistance or First Order was unclear. The flaming debris was simply to scattered and damaged to be identified.

But the way this battle was going. Poe had a feeling he did not want to know.

As be came out of his evasion he was allowed a brief second where he could get his bearings and had a clear line of sight towards their target.

The First Order fleet formation was less than ten miles away from the bombers. At their current rate they would reach them in the next few minutes. Assuming they lived that long.

Even as they approached he was in awe of the outrageous amount of power the First Order had concentrated in this fleet. Nearly a dozen giant Resurgent class star destroyers with enough power between them to turn a planet into a smoking cinder. And protected nicely behind them was the dreadnaught, an even larger ship whose weapons rendered all defences virtually useless.

The sheer imbalance in the two forces would have been hilarious if it was not at their expense.

As Poe watched he saw the Reclaimer sitting proudly at the centre of the formation. The massive Resurgent class star destroyer was unmoving as it faced him, looking like a giant silver dagger aimed at the Resistance fleet. He could not help but wonder if that was what the First Order and Empire had been going for when they designed those damned ships!

As he looked at the ship, time seemed to slow as the raging battle appeared to fade away as he studied the Reclaimer and allowed his universe to move at the speed of thought.

Most people would look at the Reclaimer and see nothing more then a ship. A monstrously big and powerful ship but still only a ship. One of dozens or possibly hundreds that the First Order could call up from their vast fleet.

That was what most people saw. Based on the recent conversation it might be all that Admiral Ackbar or even General Organa saw.

But Poe knew it was far more than that.

The ship was the lynch pin in the entire First Order. It was the flagship of their primary fleet. The sharp point of the blade that they intended into stab into the heart of the New Republic and watch it die. It was the centre of the great military machine that controlled all the other parts.

But most of all it was the throne from which Grand Admiral Kuvira ruled her nation of brain-dead, murdering, automatons.

People could talk about Supreme Leader Snoke and his secret base somewhere in the Unknown Regions all they wanted. But Poe was confident that the Snoke was just a figurehead for the First Order to have their replacement Palpatine. That was assuming he even existed at all. Meanwhile Kylo Ren for all his power, appeared to be a simple blunt instrument. Like Darth Vader; a thug or trained beast to be unleashed on enemies and then quietly put back into whatever box Snoke usually kept him in.

The General definitely viewed him as a threat. Even more then usual after she heard about how Han Solo got his ass handed to him on Starkiller base. Along with Finn and the rest of the planetary team. But while Poe would definitely not like to be on the same planet as him. He was no leader, no commander. He was at best a warrior plain and simple. At worst he was an attack hound.

No. It was the First Order High Command that acted as the true political power in the First Order and their constituent worlds. And it was Kuvira who sat at the head of the High Command.

It was her who planned the strategies. It was her who commanded the loyalty and obedience of the other Admirals and officers. And it was her who was cunning enough to trick the peoples of the galaxy into surrendering their freedom to the First Order, until they were slaves in all but name, and were fine with that.

And that was why she needed to die if the Resistance, the Republic or the galaxy was going to have any chance against the First Order.

If they fought a war against her with a demolished fleet and an under equipped and untrained army, they would be crushed. And if they were forced to rebuild a new Rebel Alliance, it would be much harder with her in control of the galaxy.

That was why she had to die here, today. And for some reason, Poe seemed to be the only one who could see that.

But maybe that was for the best. If it kept the General and the rest of the fleet out of the direct firing line. Then Poe was fine with taking down Kuvira his own way.

But first he had to do that.

Despite what Ackbar was no doubt shouting right now, Poe was not an idiot. He knew just how dangerous Kuvira was. She had crushed and crippled the Resistance's efforts for years since she took command. He had lost many good people because of her. Including many close friends in his own black squadron. He had spent a lot of time watching good people, people he cared about getting killed because of her.

That was why he was desperately trying to make sure that the bombers were as protected as possible and that their attack run had the best chance of succeeding. Because he already knew how low the chances of that already were.

"Bomber Lightning Strike is down! I repeat the Lightning Strike is going down!" Stark called through the intercom. His voice trying and failing to hide the emotion that was thick within him at the loss of their ship and friends.

Poe snapped back to himself as he watched the flaming wreckage that 10 seconds ago was a proud and intact MG-100 StarFortress SF-17 drift to a halt as its momentum was cut off when the engines died. A second later and the bomber exploded as its cargo was hit by the flames.

Poe banked his x-wing out of the way as the glowing shrapnel from the doomed Resistance ship was hurled in all directions from the force of the blast. As he moved to safe range he saw all the other fighters, Resistance and First Order do the same.

One TIE fighter was not quick or lucky enough as the explosion engulfed the fighter and ripped it apart like paper.

Poe cursed in his head at the loss, then keyed his comm set. "All bombers tighten formation. Gunners cover each other's flanks and catch them in the crossfire. We need to get the payloads to the Star Destroyer!" Poe ordered as he let lose a new volley of fire into the swarming mass of TIE fighters that seemed to be only increasing in numbers.

Then again they probably were. Had he honestly been expecting Grand Admiral Kuvira to care about whether the battle was a fair fight or not?!

"Poe we can't hold off the attackers from the bombers. We won't survive out here much longer!" Keith Ranalli yelled over the shared commlink.

Poe was not interested in hearing that kind of talk. Much less having it shouted to his entire attack force. All of whom needed every scrap of conviction and focus they could generate.

"Yes, we can!" Poe urged through his gritted teeth. "Stay tight with the bombers, maximum speed towards the Reclaimer." He closed down the link as he flew at the TIE formation firing as fast as he could pull the trigger.

The bombers moved to obey the order as they moved closer to each other. Resistance flight instructors taught bomber crews to fly in tight formation, opposing attacking fighters with overlapping fields of fire. But they were painfully slow and while being under contestant attack from every angle there was every chance that the turret gunners could accidently hit the friendly bombers.

Poe was clenching his teeth together so heard he was certain he could feel what must be blood running down his lip. The coopery taste it left made him want to wipe it away. But he did not dare let go of his control stick, for even a nanosecond. He was already utilising all of his legendary flying prowess and talent to simply stay alive.

If he lost focus at all. That would quickly change.

He fired at a TIE fighter that was pouring streaks of green energy into the side of the bomber; Cobalt Hammer. The red energy shattered the ball cockpit into fragments as the fighters exploded and the solar panel wings crashed into the side of Cobalt Hammer. Thankfully not doing any damage.

Still the fighters kept coming.

Dodging, weaving and diving as they ceaselessly attacked the bombers while duelling the A-wings and X-wings that swarmed around the bombers protectively as they answered the First Order's fire with their own.

But it was not enough.

As Poe watched the view port of the bomber Crimson Storm took a series of direct hits from what looked to be the same model of special forces TIE that Poe and Finn had used to escape the Finalizer back over Jakku. The fighter had unleashed a volley of missiles that appeared to be mag-pulse warheads.

They crashed into the transparisteel viewport and the pilot crew was immediately turned to white hot vapor along with the rest of the bomber a moment later as the explosion caused the cargo to detonate.

Once again Poe was forced to put his X-wing into s screeching turn that had him worried that the hull frame was going to split in half. But it was better then being hit by flaming explosive debris. Parts of which might even consist of the charred remains of his friends' corpses.

Poe cursed. This was the problem with the defensive formation tactic that the bomber crews had been trained in. It was a great way to maximise the defence while enveloping the bombers and (too a lesser extent) the fighters in a protective zone of crossfire.

But the glaring weakness was that if one of the bombers was damaged and their cargo was detonated. Then the rest of the bombers were in mortal danger of being hit by the blast. This in turn could cause their own payload to go off in a vicious chain reaction that could demolish their forces in seconds.

Three bombers had been destroyed and only four were left. But they were nearing their target. The Reclaimer was almost within range. In just a few more moments they would be over the target. A few more moments after that and they would be in a position to rain the proton bombs directly on to the bridge and Grand Admiral Kuvira's kriffing head.

Poe almost grinned. But then he realised that they had only survived the easy part of the battle.

Now that they had come this close to the formation of star destroyers, they were in real trouble.

The Reclaimer alone had roughly 1,500 turbolasers and ion cannons in its entire arsenal. Powerful turbolaser batteries capable of overloading enemy shields and punching through thick armour, along with enough force to reduce planetary surfaces to molten slag.

Much like its Imperial predecessors, the Resurgent destroyer featured eight dorsal heavy turbolaser turrets in pairs of four on either side of its main tower. In addition to two triple-barrelled heavy turbolaser cannons on its underside in front of its main hangar.

In short. The damn things were flying super death machines.

And this was the enemy that he was leading his attack force of four bombers…

(Poe saw a flash of light out of the corner of his eye and watched with a curse on his lips as another indicator signal blipped out of existence on his tactical screen)

Three bombers straight into the jaws of hell.

Poe was momentarily struck by how utterly insane this plan of his was as he allowed himself to actually contemplate what he was up against with his massively diminished forces. He was actually proposing that he could destroy the commander of this fleet while hopefully buying the Resistance a massively needed victory.

Poe had looked into the eyes of his comrades as he moved through the base on D'Qar as it was being evacuated. He had stared at their faces. Listened to the tone of the voices and had watched their pace as they worked, and he could easily recognise the trait he saw in all of them.

Fear, desperation, resignation. And the fact that while they were rushing about the base to get the evacuation underway. They were doing it in a way that seemed to imply that everything they were doing was futile. It was then he saw that despite their victory at Starkiller. The Resistance was having a hard time convincing itself that they could win this war.

They had taken out the enemy's big gun. So what?

The First Order had a million other weapons to bear. All of them spearheaded by Kylo Ren, possibly the most dangerous man alive since Darth Vader. And all of it commanded by a woman who was quite possibly the greatest military tactician alive today. The fact that many had heard Kuvira's talk with General Organa had not helped. When she had commented that hope could easily become delusion had been a hard blow to their already fragile spirits.

The Resistance needed this; he knew that. They needed to deliver a hammer blow against the First Order. To prove to the First Order that this war was far from over. And to prove to themselves that the fight was not pointless. That they would not give up or give in.

While he doubted Ackbar would agree with him or his reasons. He was not expecting him to. In his opinion Ackbar was a great strategist and Admiral. But that same quality made him blind or apathetic to the feelings or moral of his troops. He expected his orders to be followed and he did not have time or patience for subordinates that questioned him or deviated from the plan.

While Poe respected Ackbar. He saw him as a good Admiral but not a natural leader. Thankfully the Resistance had Leia Organa to stand in for that.

He brought himself back to the present as he aimed his cannons and fired and yet another TIE fighter and watched with supreme satisfaction as it exploded to dust.

As he did not he noticed that time had passed by during his mental musings. The three remaining bombers in the squadron and what was left of the fighter escort were nearly over the silver steel hull of the Resurgent class star destroyer.

Poe grinned as he opened up the comm channel and sent out his message to the entire Resistance attack force.

"We are nearly over the target, heading for the sweet spot in the central frame of the ship. Remember we only get one shot at this and then we get the hell out of here. But when we pull it off we will have given the First Order a blow they won't forget!" He proclaimed. "Bombers open your bay doors and prep the bombs for the drop sequence.

No sooner were the words past his lips, that the First Order fleet finally opened fire!

 **Kuvira – POV**

Kuvira watched from the command bridge as the Resistance bombers made their torturously slow progress towards their position. If she had not needed to remain focused to coordinate the battle and to issue the n necessary orders, she would have been in danger of falling asleep. She could not help but ask herself why the Resistance had decided to utilise a bomber design that was the equivalent of a flying turtle.

Someone might ask why they had not used the tried and true Y-wing model. It was infinitely faster for a start and it had proven itself at the battles of Scarif, Yavin and Endor. Not to mention countless others. It contained a complement of ion torpedoes that in the right number and use could disable an Imperial class star destroyer for a short time.

But Kuvira found herself answering her own question. The Y-wing (despite its storied history) had been outmoded even as the Clone Wars were coming to their end. The fighter/bomber had been discontinued and was no longer in production by the Empire after the first five years of Imperial rule.

Instead they were sent to salvage yards and recycling facilities across the galaxy to be destroyed. That was what had allowed the Rebel Alliance to scavenge so many of them to add to their growing fleet. But even then the Rebels had been making use of a ship that had been far surpassed by newer models. They were used simply because they were desperate, and it was the best they could get.

The Y-wing heavy weapons payload allowed them to carry a good amount of ordnance for its size, whether they be solid projectiles like proton torpedoes or gravity weapons like the electro-proton bomb. This arsenal while effective was incredibly small and often the Y-wing could not inflict enough damage to complete their mission.

In addition, the speed and manoeuvrability of certain models, in particular the two-seat BTL-S3, was considered subpar. So much so that some Rebel pilots dubbed them 'flying coffins'

The MG-100 StarFortress SF-17 (while much slower) was a very hard-hitting bomber. It was intended to deliver a payload of 1,048 proton bombs on top of a target. The bombs would then be drawn magnetically to their targets to ensure maximum damage over a chosen vulnerability. In summation, the bombers might be lumbering flying targets. But they were effective lumbering targets.

The full bomb payload of even one would be enough to severely damage or even destroy the Reclaimer.

But Kuvira was not going to allow that. She loved her ship like it was her own child. Over countless missions and battles. It was as much a part of her as her own arm. And she was not going to let anyone, least of all a naïve man-child like Poe Dameron take it from her.

She turned to the comms officer. "Order the Strikefast, the Defiance, the Allegiance and the Temperance to focus their fire on the Raddus's engines and shield generators with sporadic fire on the remaining Resistance cruisers. I want the Raddus's shields strained to their limit and I want the engines under constant barrage from the fleet and from our fighters." She commanded.

"Order the SF TIE fighters to press their attack an to utilise their warheads to destroy the engines. It is the best chance we have to disable them as they can attack from within the shield barrier."

"Yes, Grand Admiral." The comms officer exclaimed as he began to issue her orders to the fleet. With a few moments the space between the First Order and Resistance fleets erupted into green light as the four enlisted star destroyers unleashed the full force of all their turbo batteries.

The Fighter and Bomber squads were dazzled as an almost unbroken sheet of green energy appeared and flashed past them as the energy bolts lanced towards the Raddus. The turbo blasts slammed into the Raddus's shield envelope and exploded. For a brief moment it looked like the Raddus was wreathed in flames. But the prototype shields were clearly worth the investment as the shields continued to hold and the deadly blasts were dissipated across the field and the ship itself remained unharmed.

Kuvira was disappointed but in all honesty she had not expected the attack to succeed out right. It was simply to keep the Raddus's shield under pressure and to make sure that the Resistance did not send aid to Dameron's kamikaze attack.

If the shield failed in the process. So much the better

She turned to face Peavey. "All batteries open fire at the Resistance attack squadron. Have Alpha Squadron in position and have them ready to launch their attack if they reach the designated boundary. Ensure all fighter craft are ordered to pull away to a safe distance. I don't want them to be caught in the crossfire." She ordered before turning back to the viewport to watch the battle. Confident that Peavey would execute her orders to the letter.

Though she made a mental note to be aware of that in the future. She did not wish to repeat the mistake made by Canady. Which she had to admit (after she allowed her aggravation to settle) was just as much her fault as his.

If the soldier's orders are not explained clearly, the fault lay with the commander. It was only if the orders had been explained clearly that fault lay with the soldiers.

And she was forced to admit that her orders could have been clearer due to her assumptions. A mistake she vowed never to repeat.

Assuming she survived this battle of course. It was not wise to assume anything in war.

As she watched she saw the guns of the Reclaimer open fire. Massive green energy blasts were sent hurtling at the Resistance squadron. Even as that happened she saw the TIE fighters break off their own attack and flew away from the Resistance ships as they re-grouped into ready formation.

She watched as the Resistance X-wing and A-wing fighters scattered away from their previously tight defensive formation around the three remaining bombers as they fled from the incoming fire. Very much like a flock of hawk bats flushed from their nests.

Given the situation it was very appropriate.

While the fighters were able to dodge the incoming fire with little difficulty, the bombers were less fortunate. It was borderline comedic how the ungainly machines tried to take what might be generously called 'evasive action' to avoid the oncoming.

But it was simply not enough. Turbo laser blasts slammed into the pair of bombers with enough force to rock the ship off its current flight path before its repulse engines compromised and got the bomber moving forward again. Only for the next blast to smash into it as well.

She was not surprised that the bomber was not destroyed out right. The MG-100 StarFortress SF-17 was not fast but it was appropriately named. They were covered in thick armour that was made out of a strengthened alloy of durusteel and duneium. This combination made it one of the hardest armours in the known galaxy. While it could not be created in enough volume to be used on capital ships it was good for ships the size of the bombers. Even the cockpits and ball turrets on the StarFortress were encased in an armoured transparisteel shell, while deflector shields protected the gunner.

Not even Poe Dameron would be foolish enough to throw his bomber squadron into a battle that would see them destroyed long before they ever came close to their target. He was reckless and in many ways short-sighted, but he was not stupid. Kuvira had to concede that point.

The bombers were very resilient, and a few turbo laser hits would not destroy them. But even the alloy armour could not hold up to the relentless pounding from a Resurgent class star destroyer for long. They knew they had only a few moments to deliver their payload before the armour began to fail and eventually gave way before the Reclaimer's weapons.

But the bombers did not need to survive for long to be able to deploy their payload and to destroy the Reclaimer beneath her feet.

Kuvira knew that the bombers would likely be destroyed before they reached the needed position to release their bombs. Still there was a chance for them to succeed and Kuvira was fully aware of how often the Rebels had triumphed against all logic.

And she had no intention of allowing them any opportunity to do so again. As she watched the bombers weather the fire from her ship she held her commlink to her lips, but she did not activate it yet.

Not until she saw what she was waiting for.

When she did see it, she did not hesitate. She activated her commlink and keyed it to the personnel frequency of her own Alpha squadron.

"Flight Commander, the target is open, commence your attack run now. Ensure success at all costs." She ordered calmly.

"Acknowledged, Grand Admiral."

Instantly, but unnoticed by the Resistance, movement stirred in the darkness directly beneath the hull of the Reclaimer. The ship was carefully situated so the light of the system sun was heavily concentrated on the upper surface of the ships hull.

This had resulted in the underside of the Star destroyer to be completely in shadow and with the Resistance's attention focused solely on staying alive and battling the attacking TIE fighters. They had failed to notice a very real threat beneath them.

Once the order was received from the Grand Admiral, the ships had activated their engines and moved into the attack.

From out of the darkness a hidden squadron of First Order SF TIE fighters moved into the light directly below the battle taking place right above them as the bombers moved into position. Unlike the grey TIE's of the Empire, the First Order TIE fighters were all black in colour. This vague difference had allowed them to hide in the shadow of the Reclaimer. With their engines off and their electronic signatures disabled. They had been as good as invisible.

"Maintain formation and ready all weapons. Follow my lead." The flight commander ordered as the dozen TIE fighters flew out from beneath the capital ship and turned their fighters upward to face the battle that was still raging before their eyes now.

Despite the distance, all the pilots of the veteran Alpha squadron could see what had changed to call of them to attack.

The MG-100 StarFortress SF-17 was formidable to even the fire from a capital ship. Against its hardened armour the weapons of a TIE fighter would do little more then scratch it unless it was able to get a direct hit on a vulnerable area, like the cockpit.

But so far the gunners and Resistance fighters had done an admirable job of keeping the First Order fighters away from the most vulnerable part of the bombers.

But now the situation had changed with the utterance of a simple sentence seconds ago. 'Bombardiers, begin your drop sequence.'

That simple but crucial order for both sides had resulted in the bomber bay doors begin opened and the hundreds of bombs being primed and ready to be released down onto the Reclaimers deck.

It was an order that the Resistance had been desperate to hear as it meant that they were closing in on the target and were almost able to score their victory and get out of this death trap. It was an order Poe was elated to hear as well. It was a sign that they were almost about to win, and he was going to be vindicated for his plan. (Which as the losses built up he had been starting to question).

But unbeknownst to the Resistance, the First Order had been waiting for that order to be issued as well. For a very simple reason.

The bomber bay doors were now open and while the bombs were now free to be launched once they reached the Reclaimer. That also meant that a section of the MG-100 StarFortress SF-17 tough armour was now peeled back to expose the highly volatile explosives contained deep within them.

"We are going to shred them!" One of the Alpha squadron pilots breathed into his helmet. His voice was thick with anticipation and glee at the mere thought of it.

"Maintain comm discipline!" The flight commander barked as the pilots whispered words carried through to the squadron comm channel.

The pilots immediately fell silent as the flight commander silently seethed that such a lack of decorum and protocol would never have happened with Grand Admiral Kuvira at her usual place at the head of the squadron.

Still he was realistic to know that the fault for that lay with him not being able to command the same level of respect. That was his failing more than it was the pilots. Still discipline must be demanded and enforced.

"Red group; move in on the far-left bomber. Blue group; target the central bomber with me. Green group; target the bomber on the far-right. Focus fire on the bomb chambers through the open bay doors. This attack must be simultaneous and devastating. The lives of everyone on the Reclaimer are depending on this attack. Including the life of Grand Admiral Kuvira." The flight commander ordered. Carefully dropping the Grand Admiral's name, knowing it would make the entire squadron use all their skill and focus to pull off this attack safe the life of the Squadron leader.

"Acknowledged!"

With that said the fighters immediately accelerated their speed and flew directly at the exposed bombers.

Like a pack of Firaxan sharks from the deep oceans of Maanan. The fighters came from the dark depths and headed straight towards their completely unsuspecting prey.

If the Resistance forces had been more attentive they might have noticed the incoming attack. But the bomber crews were devoting all their attention to shooting down the attacking TIE fighters and keeping their bomber in once piece long enough for them to drop their payload.

Meanwhile the Resistance fighters were too focused in the TIE fighters that they could actually see and were actively attacking them. Kuvira had planned this attack to ensure that the Resistance's focus was split at a crucial time.

Kuvira watched from the bridge as the fighters closed in on the bomber squadron as the three remaining bombers inched closer to the Reclaimer while weathering the fire from the star destroyer's turbo cannons.

While she admitted was somewhat sadistic. She found that there was an awe-inspiring beauty in the perfect execution of an ambush attack on a completely unsuspecting prey. Much like the previous analogy, she found it comparable to sharks in the oceans. Or perhaps the dive of a predator bird towards the ground as they attacked from above.

It had a primal aspect to it that could not help but be admired. The fact that it was her own forces about to pounce on her clueless enemy naturally helped her opinion.

The TIE fighters continued their attack as they moved into range to minimise the risk of missing in their opening strike and warning their enemies. The Resistance remained oblivious to the threat.

Kuvira mentally counted down the seconds.

'Five'

The TIE's closed in as the bombers bay doors fully opened.

'Four'

The bombs within the bomb bay's light up as the Resistance bomber crews activated and armed their deadly payload.

'Three'

The Resistance finally noticed something was wrong as the previous squadrons of attacking TIE fighters suddenly break off their attack and scatter as they quickly evacuate the impending blast radius.

'Two'

Poe Dameron surveys the suddenly clear battlefield and suddenly his natural pilot instinct kicks in and he becomes very aware of where that bad feeling in his chest is coming from. He turned his x-wing in a tight curve and instantly saw the TIE fighters shooting up from the depths of space.

'One'

Poe's eyes widened in horror and he seized the commlink and screamed into it. But even as he did, he knew it was far too late.

"EVASIVE ACTION, TURN….!"

The SF TIE fighters fired simultaneously, with the perfect precision that could only be found in the personnel squadron of the Grand Admiral.

Before the Resistance bomber and fighter pilots could even process what was happening, the deadly energy blasts streaked past the open bay doors and slammed into the open and exposed bomb bays.

In ordinary circumstances one could be forgiven for asking why the bombers bay doors were not ray shielded to avoid exactly this weakness. Why did they not have a protective shield to allow the bombs to pass through while blocking all incoming energy blasts like a typical energy shield. However past tests had shown that ray shields were hazardous to the components of the proton bombs.

In summation it typically led to them being neutralised as the passed through the shield on route to their target. Or much more dangerous was the possibility that the ray shield would cause the portion bombs to prematurely detonate as they passed through the shield. The shield's energy field held a very real risk of causing the bombs components to detonate.

In the end the design was scrapped in favour of the more vulnerable but less risky design with the open bay door defences.

Now that decision (while the smart choice) was going to cost the Resistance dearly.

The bay was filled with 1,048 proton bombs which had now been activated and armed in preparation for their drop sequence. Each of those bombs was filled with enough explosives to blow a hole in a sheet of solid dunium. And those bombs had just been struck by bolts of energized plasma.

The effect was instantaneous.

The bombs exploded with a force that naturally caused all the other hundreds of bombs to detonate. The blast was forced from the bomb bay to shoot up the ascension ladder and flow into the cockpit and the gunner ball positions.

The crew was in many ways fortunate. The energized proton detonation was more then enough to instantly melt the flesh from their bones. Their bodies were blasted by the explosion as their flesh vanished and their organs were ripped apart by the force of the blazing hot energy. Their bodies were non-existent before they could even draw breath into their lungs to scream.

Mercifully they were also cosmic ash before their brains could truly comprehend what was happening to them. For all intents and purposes, they had existed in one moment. And had not in the next.

One of the lives that was snuffed out in that moment bore the name of Paige Tico. The Haysian smelt pendant she wore around her neck melting and fusing into her flesh as the blast past over them. In the end she was scattered to the solar winds with her pendant now a part of her. A gesture that (if she could have been aware of) would probably have appreciated in her last moment.

The blast was in no way confined to the interior or the crew within the bombers.

The dunium and durusteel alloy that the MG-100 StarFortress SF-17 was made of was strong. But faced with an explosion of that magnitude within its hull, the metal gave way like wet paper.

Each of the three bombers was literally ripped apart from the inside out. The hull warping as the blast tore bulkheads loose and hurled molten pieces of fiery slag out in all directions. The fact that the bombers had previously been flying close for protection only ensured that the separate blasts combined and empowered each other.

With shockwave interference at work the three separate blasts combined to what could reasonably be called a pocket nova.

The three burning hulks that had once been Resistance bombers were turned to shrapnel as the combined explosion blasted out into the black ether of space.

Even the Reclaimer was not spared as the blast enveloped the central bow point of the star destroyer. For a moment the massive ship shuddered as the entire vessel was subjected to the intense shockwave that had occurred just metres away from the hull armour plating. Thankfully it soon past as the vibrations ceased and the explosive light faded away.

This allowed Kuvira to take a quick stock of the damage to her beloved ship. The damage was negligible and was limited to a light scorching of the hull metal. Still it left no doubt in Kuvira's mind that the direct hit of the combined blasts of the bombs could have crippled or even destroyed her ship.

All around the explosion the Resistance and First Order fighters fled at breakneck speed to escape the fiery immolation. The First Order TIE's, having been forewarned held a head start was able to escape with no loss of life in the blast.

The Resistance pilots that had manged to escape the blast with limited casualties. However, there had been two that had not been able to react fast enough to enable them to escape the blast radius. An A-wing and an x-wing had vanished into the fireball.

Poe watched as his plan came apart within seconds as he saw some of the greatest men and women in the Resistance and some of the best people in the galaxy vanish in a blinding flash of light.

Kuvira watched the same light as it faded away and the immediate danger to her ship was eliminated. She was proud of how her Alpha squadron had performed perfectly in this attack. That was after all the purpose to a commander and leader. To ensure that his or her people are trained and experienced and skilled enough to function on their own without her.

But she was not concerned with a now vanquished threat. Her mind had already dismissed that in drive to focus on the core objective.

With the bomber squadrons destroyed the Resistance offensive had been blunted. Their sword had been smashed aside. Now it was time to punch through and shatter their shield.

Kuvira activated her commlink. "Captain Canady. What is the status on the auto cannons?" She asked simply as she waited for the answer.

Canady's response came back immediately, and it was full of satisfaction. "Grand Admiral, the auto cannon will be fully charged…right…. about…. now!" He proclaimed as the charge on the Fulminatrix's bridge controls reached 100%. "We are ready to fire at the Raddus one your command." He stated with his voice growing humble as the memory of his colossal error silently came back to haunt him.

Kuvira would have normally reprimanded Canady for wasting precious time asking a clearly obvious question. However, she noted that the captain's sudden reluctance to show initiative was due to his previous failure to anticipate her orders. And that was an error that she had already admitted to sharing fault in.

"By all means Captain, fire on their command cruiser." She responded bluntly. She wanted this farce over and down with.

Upon her orders the giant dreadnaughts auto cannons began to burn a foreboding red as the energy was gathered.

 **Raddus Command Bridge**

 **Ackbar - POV**

Ackbar and Leia had watched as their bomber and fighter squadrons had charged at the First Order formations. With the communications between the mand the squadrons cut off, they were helpless as they saw hundreds of their brave men and woman charge straight into the proverbial meatgrinder.

It also showed the staggering level of personal loyalty that Poe was able to command that had allowed him to convince each and every on of the fighter and bomber crews to sever all comlinks to the Raddus and to not even hesitate in his borderline treasonous orders.

In any other circumstances Leia would have been impressed and inspired. It would have shown her that Poe truly was worthy to carry the torch of rebellion forward once she was gone, one way or another. But in this situation she was not inspired in anyway.

Ackbar would not have been inspired regardless. In a normal situation he would have been aggravated. But now he was completely wrathful!

As he watched the final bursts of flame die out, he saw the indicators on the tactical holo map blink out of existence. That was another Resistance starship and crew that had been lost on this suicide run. And he had had enough of it!

He strode towards the holomap and firmly but gently moved past Leia who was watching the holomap intently. With dramatic force he slammed his webbed hand down on the communication controls. It would send a powerful override signal to all Resistance ships including Poe renegades.

There was a chance that if Poe had complexly disconnected the comm system, that he would be aunable to hear the message. Personally, Ackbar did not think that Poe or his followers would have gone that far during their little stunt. But it was a possibility.

Ackbar did not now if Poe or his followers would receive the message. But in truth he did not care. His concern at this moment was the survival of the Resistance and the safety of everyone in the fleet. He would give Poe and his renegades one last chance to re-join the fleet.

After that he would order the fleet to jump to lightspeed. Even if it meant leaving the stubborn fools here to face their fate.

With the comm channel open he spoke clearly and firmly to all the Resistance across and over D'Qar. Let know one claim that he did not give them the chance. "Commander, Dameron! The dreadnaught is ready and aimed to fire. We are leaving this system now, with or without you! Get your survivors (Ackbar put slight emphasise on that word) back here now, that is an order!" Ackbar barked into the comm channel.

After a second, the resigned voice of Dameron came back. "Understood Admiral, we are on our way." "Poe relented with defeat and grief mixed heavily into his voice. "All ships, return to the Raddus." He ordered as he turned black one back towards the fleet and went to full speed to reach the ship in time.

Immediately the surviving half a dozen fighters wheeled around and followed Poe towards the Raddus. The A-wing and X-wing survivors gunned their engines as they raced to the protection of the Raddus's hanger bay. They were able to make their way directly across the debris strewn battlefield with no interference.

 **Poe - POV**

Poe frowned in his cockpit as he noticed that they were not being attacked or harassed by the enemy star fighters. While he had sometimes said to his comrades that the First Order made it too easy. This time they actually where.

And that made him get a bad feeling.

He searched the star-studded sky around him as he tried to see some sign of the First Order TIE fighters. But it was hard to see their black painted hulls against the black void of space.

Then he saw them!

It was hard but he saw the black shapes of the TIE fighters as they shot through the ether. They were flying at attack speed and they were moving with obvious intent.

But they were not flying at the Resistance fighters. They were not even flying at the Resistance fleet anymore. Poe frowned as he saw that the TIE fighters were bolting as away from the Raddus and the other Resistance formations as fast as their sub-light engines were able to take them.

Poe's eyes widened as he put the pieces together. There was only one reason the First Order fighters would be running away from an enemy they were on the verge of crushing. Poe would have normally joked that they were simply scared of the Resistance pilots. But this was one moment where jokes had no place.

They were trying to escape the blast radius.

Poe keyed the commlink with his hands. But he was so desperate that he could not activate it with his fumbling hands.

He cursed as he finally got a grip and activated the channel. "General Organa, Admiral Ackbar. The dreadnaught is going to fire. You have to get out of here now. NOW!" He screamed even as he tried to coax more speed from his X-wing.

"Poe w…" Leia began but Poe cut her off before she could say more.

"Get the fleet to hyperspace! We won't make it back in time! We will jump out and find you later. But go NOW!" He shouted in a tone that was partly an order and partly begging.

Leia hesitated, but only for a moment. Just when Ackbar thought he might have to step in. Leia gave the order. "All craft, jump to hyperspace rendezvous at the chosen coordinates." She commanded.

But even as the Raddus and the rest of the three cruisers began to power up their hyperdrives and put the coordinates into the navi computer, they knew it was too late.

They had spent too long waiting for the return of the fighter and bomber squadrons. The First Order dreadnaught had charged up the auto cannons and they were ready to fire. The attack would come too fast and even the Raddus's shield and armour would be nothing next to the power of those giant cannons. That was the whole reason they had been designed. To destroy shielded targets!

There was nothing they could do to avoid the attack. There was nothing anyone could do at all.

One the Fulminatrix, Captain Canady watched as the monitor confirmed that the Fulminatrix was ready to fire with a full charge. He wasted no time in giving the order 9still painfully aware that his life, literal or otherwise, might very well depend on his actions in the next few seconds.

"Lock on to their main cruiser and fire the cannons!" He shouted to his crew. He would allow no one to claim lack of understanding in this moment.

On the Reclaimer, Kuvira received confirmation that the Fulminatrix had reached full charge and was commencing firing. She did not move or smile or even acknowledge that she had heard the comm officer's report.

She just continued to stare out of the viewport at the Raddus. It was almost as if she was trying to remember what it looked like before it was turned to a glowing cloud of ash. Then she inhaled audibly as her shoulders rose with the motion. Then she let the breath out as she watched the Raddus and the Resistance fleet until the moment when the Fulminatrix fired.

In the moment when it happened all sentient beings in the solar system held their breath.

The Fulminatrix cannons erupted as the massive energy blasts of ionized plasma burst from the auto cannons barrels and flew along their trajectory. As the entire First Order and Resistance fleets watched the balls of energy, they could not help but compare them to glowing comets.

The comparison was accurate, given how dangerous comets could be. They had the power to end life on an entire planet. And that was what they would do here.

The energy blasts flew towards the Raddus with nothing in their way to stop them and this time the Raddus would not be saved due to luck or the force.

The blasts short past the Resistance pilots as they scattered to avoid the deadly energy. Poe sent his X-Wing to a corkscrew as he managed to avoid the attack. One of his pilots was not so luck and her screams were cuts short as her A-wing was simply engulfed into the giant plasma ball like it was not even there.

Then the auto cannons blasts hit the Resistance fleet and the space around it erupted in crimsons flames.

What happened in that moment would be debated by galactic historians for centuries to come. But they all agree on the events that took place.

Just before the auto cannons attack hit the Resistance fleet flagship the two ships the Virgil and the Anodyne moved position. Instead of remaining in their previous post right behind and too the side of the Raddus. Protected by its massive shield envelope. They had both moved forward, and in the process the Virgil was now next to the front half of the Raddus while the Anodyne was behind and slightly above it.

Some historians and military expertise summarise that the two ships were trying to get into a better position to enter hyperspace while still being protected by the Raddus's shields

Other more idealistic individuals claim that what the two ships did was an obvious act of heroism. That the two ships had moved into to take the worst of the Fulminatrix's blow in order to spare the Raddus and to allow the Resistance to fight another day.

The more cynical individuals argue that the two ships were clearly attempting to jump to hyperspace on their own and abandon their allies to their fate. They claim what happened next was simply an accident due to their own idiocy and incompetence.

Regardless of the reasons. The events are the same.

The Virgil was hit first as the first two energy blasts slammed through the Raddus's shield. The previously invisible protective field flashed blue before it vanished rom existence as the defence bubble was destroyed.

Then the auto cannons blasts continued on as they smashed into the now undefended Virgil. The ships armour and haphazard construction was no match for the power of the First Order dreadnaught. The ship exploded like a firecracker as the metal was blasted apart and the atmosphere of the ship quickly escaped and caused the flames to roil before burning out. Along with the lives of everyone aboard.

The Anodyne was the next ship that was hit. The two previous blasts had collided with the Raddus's shield and the Virgil. Both which had since ceased to exist.

Now the third blast wave slammed into the Anodyne hospital ship as it tried to veer its position. But it was nowhere near quick enough. The third blast ripped the ship clean in half as it caused the central structure to break as the plasma blast and the ship both disappeared in a ball of fire.

Three of the four auto-cannon blasts had been used. Two against the shield and the Virgil. One against the Anodyne.

The final blast blazed through the flames and the debris and scored a direct hit on the side of the Raddus's armoured hull.

The blast shattered durusteel and warped dunium as the massive battle cruiser rocked and bucked against the sudden force that was raging through it.

The systems went wild as their energy sources and engineering was overwhelmed. The bulkhead screeched and groaned under the sudden tension caused by the impact. People who were lucky enough to have been located deep within the ship or on the other side were thrown from their feet and hurled into the walls. Those who were located in the starboard side, were not so fortunate.

Those that were not obliterated by the impact itself were thrown by the force so hard that they received either crippling injuries or death.

One the bridge the crew screamed as the consoles sparked and the ship rocked violently. The lights went dark and then returned twice as bright before going down again. Smoke began to fill the chamber as it burst from the fried electronics and ventilation system.

Ackbar pulled himself up from the floor and seized the command console. With his vision blurry from the impact and his fingers nerveless from the stress of the day. He grabbed the manual override for the hyperdrive.

He did not know if the ship could make the jump to hyperspace.

He did not know if the ship could survive the trip through hyperspace.

He did not even know if the ship was still in one piece.

All he knew was that they needed to get out of this system. Right now, anywhere was better then here. And if they were destroyed in the attempt. At least he would deny the First Order the pleasure of being the ones that killed them.

With that last through he pulled the Manuel override and fell back to the floor as the engines ignited and the world fell away.

 **Authors Note**

 **Sorry about the wait. A combination of life and writers block caused that. Not my best chapter I know. I could not seem to find my writing flow. Anyway. I hope you enjoyed it regardless.**


	26. Chapter 26 - Checkmate

**Chapter 26 – Checkmate**

 **The Raddus - Outer-Rim Territories**

 **Leia Organa – POV**

Leia was thrown from her feet as the Raddus (or whatever was left of it) came back into real space after less than two seconds in hyperspace. The stabilisers that would normally have allowed for a smooth transition from hyperspace were clearly offline. As a result, the ship had emerged with the feeling of smashing into an asteroid.

For the dozenth time today she felt her aged bones hit the durusteel floor of the command bridge with excessive force and she felt the breath whoosh out of her lungs as they were battered against her rib cage. It was only due to her instinctive force shield barrier that prevented her from breaking bones upon impact.

Based on the shouts and screams of pain she heard echo across the command deck. Not everyone had been as lucky as her.

The lights of the command centre continued to flicker on and off as the ship's electronics fluctuated and the room was thrust into complete darkness for a few moments before the lights returned. Only to fade again within a couple of seconds.

For a moment Leia simply lay there on the cold steel floor as the room moved between light and darkness. In that moment she found that oddly symbolic of the galaxy. She allowed herself to lie there as her thoughts and her body slowed to an almost complete stop.

She thought about how wonderful it would be to just lie there forever and let the galaxy move one without her. To forget the Resistance and the First Order. The Jedi and the Sith. The light and the darkness. To let it all, slip away and just be at peace. To finally have some semblance of contentment in a galaxy that had proven to be so cruel throughout her life.

But even as the thought entered Leia's mind she knew she could not obey it. She was old, her defiant spirit worn down and on her last legs of resilience. But she was not dead yet. And the galaxy still needed her and the Resistance to fight for it.

Cleary she was not alone in thinking that. Even as she channelled her strength into her limbs to rise from the ground. She felt a number of hands grabbing her and gently hauling her into a sitting up position. Even as they did her heard them frantically asking if she was okay. While others called for medical droids to the bridge. Though whether or not those droids were intended for her or for other wounded she did not know.

As her eyes came back into focus and the lights of the bridge finally stabilised, she was able to look around her.

The bridge was shrouded in smoke that continued to waft from the fired electrics and the now exposed wiring that snaked their way from tears and gashes in the ships command consoles and wall terminals. Already she could hear people coughing as they tried to turn away the black vapor.

The holo terminal displays were flickering in an out of existence as the blue images cracked and buzzed while they tried to project themselves through the damaged systems.

The room was full of groaning, crying or simply stunned Resistance personnel. Most were on their feet, nursing small bruises and trying to tend to those with more severe injuries.

The ones with worse injuries were either lying on the ground or they were sat up and leaning against the consoles and display terminals. Some were gritting their teeth against the pain. Others were more open with their situation and openly wailed.

She could see Ackbar was half leaning and half slumped against the central command station. His hand (fin) still within reach of the hyperdrive control that he had slammed to get them away from D'Qar. The Mon Cala Admiral was breathing deeply as his gill expanded and deflated as he seemed to collect himself.

But despite that he still did not move from his position across the control station. It seemed that he could not quite believe that he had managed to activate the hyperdrive. Or like Leia, he might be fighting the urge to simply stay where he was an ignore the chaos that was unfolding around him.

If that was the case, Leia saw it did not last long. Ackbar slowly moved to his feet. He waved off the command crew members who moved to help him and stood tall and proud on his own.

With a feeling of admiration, and an equal amount of personnel shame. Leia stood up as well. Though she allowed herself to lean on her comrades as they helped her to her feet and checked her for injuries.

After she assured them that she was alright she moved over to Ackbar, who had told his own well wishers to beat it (in words that were only slightly more polite). Seeing Leia make her way over to him had him standing to his usual stiff attention stance.

"General Organa, I have just ordered a full status update and system scan of the entire ship. I have also received confirmation that the comms are repaired and we can resume contact with the Ninka. Reports indicate that Admiral Holdo managed to follow us out of the D'Qar system without any issue." He reported in his typical military manner.

Leia wanted to smile despite the situation. Even in the middle of a damaged and smoking command centre with their cause in ruins. Ackbar still would not allow himself a second without seeing to his duties. He would not allow his people and soldiers to see him at anything other then his best. He was the unflinching shield that they could always count on to stand firm with them. That was why the Resistance needed him so badly, especially now.

She suddenly wondered if that was how the First Order soldiers and pilots saw Grand Admiral Kuvira.

She placed her hand on his shoulder and for a moment just sent him a grateful smile. She wanted to say so many things to him. How grateful she was for all he had done for her and the rebellion during their many years together. How she would not be able to keep fighting if not for him. Or how she had seldom seen a more loyal and steadfast companion. That it was a privilege to know him.

But time was off the essence and she needed to hope that all those things and more could be communicated through this one small smile.

"Thank you Admiral, what is the status of the Raddus?" She asked as it was the first question she could think to ask amid all the chaos of today.

Ackbar turned back to the consoles (that were still working) and quickly scanned the information. He then began to recite the reports to Leia even as new ones came flooding in from all over the ship.

"The damage to the ship's hull and frame is still being checked General Organa. But we have reports of multiple hull breaches. The main one from the direct impact stretches across 10% of the port hull. There are reports of multiple small breaches that radiate from the impact zone across the rest of the ship stretching back from the engines to the foredeck. The ray shields have been activated in the damaged compartments of the ship where they are still active. In the sections where they are not responding the blast doors have come down sealing the damaged area's off." Ackbar recited as he continued to study the reports.

"There has been extensive damage to the cargo holds as well as the fighter hanger. For all intents and purposes the starboard side hanger no longer exists as it was almost at the centre of the impact. Most of the remaining X-wings and A-wings we had stored there have been wiped out." He said as he moved his piscine eyes across the display to another report that had just been submitted

"We also have lost a few of the transports as their hanger was hit by the impact as well. Not as badly as the fighter hanger. But still the hanger has been sealed off due to the damage and while most transports are undamaged, many have been lost."

"Finally, we have multiple casualty reports coming in from all decks. Exact numbers will not be available for some time. But estimations indicate that over two hundred personnel and crew were killed in the blast. With roughly another three hundred nursing injuries ranging from minor to life threatening."

As he spoke a final report came in from the maintenance crews and the automatic damage control systems. As Ackbar read it, his aquatic skin lightened a few shades and his gills sagged as he signed out his frustration. Or was it resignation?

"We have final confirmation of the damage to the ship from the blast impact." He paused as if he was trying to summon up the courage to speak the words aloud. Or maybe it was a subconscious juvenile hope that if he did not speak the words allowed, they would not be true.

"The ship suffered total damage to the starboard side through the engineering, hanger, and aft sections. Basically General, the ship has been almost cleaved in two. Only the furthermost sections on the port side remain to connect the stern to the bow sections of the ship. Those areas are a confusion of emergency ray shields, containment blast doors and melted slag that used to be parts of the destroyed areas." Ackbar said grimly as he pulled up a green holographic projection of the Raddus.

Then he altered the image to show the damaged or destroyed section of the ship in red. It looked like a monolithic Titan or monster had taken a bite out of the durusteel Raddus. Leaving only a small sliver of intact hull and innards to keep the ship in one piece.

Even if only barely.

Leia looked at the image and quickly she understood the situation. The Raddus was lost. Even if they were not at war and did not have a ruthless enemy chasing them. The Raddus was not going anywhere with this amount of damage.

The fact that the ship had managed to remain in Hyperspace for the brief second that it did was nothing short of a miracle and a testament to the engineering skills of the Mon Cala. She could only assume that the sudden entrance to hyperspace had been activated before the blast could completely destroy the ship or break it in half.

But now they needed a new plan. The Raddus could not be repaired in space. It needed a fully supplied and state of the art dockyard facility. The only places that were capable of such a job were Kuat Drive yards, Sienar Fleet Systems and Coreillain Engineering. All of whom had very dubious connections to the First Order and could not be trusted.

There was Mon Cala itself. But the planet was on the other side of the Outer Rim territories and they could not keep their arrival secret.

But all of this was irrelevant as the Raddus could not make it to any of those places. The ship could no longer move in real space. Much less survive another hyperspace jump even to the next star system. The ship was dead in space. And if they did not move soon they would likely be joining it.

Ackbar finished as he turned away from the display to face Leia.

"In summation General. We have catastrophic damage to the Raddus and the ship is a lost cause. We have nearly half the crew dead or wounded and the rest are struggling to recover their comrades or repair the damage in some small way." The old Mon Calamari finished sombrely. He would not sugar coat anything to Leia. He knew she needed to hear it. Even if she deserved to hear better news.

Leia wanted to let out the largest sigh she had ever uttered. It was going to be the only way she could physically express her feelings in this moment. But as always her crew needed her to show strength, poise and determination in the midst of sheer adversity and remain un phased.

Besides she knew she should be grateful.

They had been in a situation that most would deem untenable.

They had been facing a fleet that so vastly outgunned their own that it was almost hilarious. They had lost their bombers. Their base. And finally, they had a series of planet shaking dreadnaught energy blasts heading right for them.

It would have been perfectly reasonable to believe they were all going to die a fiery death in that moment. But instead the Force had saved them. They were alive, as was the Ninka and the Resistance was still alive in them. From here they would go on to rebuild and return to the fight against the First Order and their darkness.

But in that moment she could not help but think of the thousands under her leadership who had died today. It was one of the worst defeats she had endured since the battle of Mako-Ta.

But she could not dwell on those how had died. She would mourn for them later. Right now, she needed to focus on the people she could save.

"Contact the Ninka and make arrangements for all the injured that can be moved to be transported to the Ninka. They will receive better treatment over there, while freeing up space for the critically injured and essential crews on the Raddus." She ordered before pausing. "Please ensure that Han and Chewbacca are moved on the Ninka as quickly as possible."

She already saw Ackbar open his mouth to refute this when she interrupted him. She knew that Ackbar had never cared much for Han and would not see why he should be given preferential treatment. But Leia knew that the First Order would still be hunting them.

If they found them with the Raddus immobile. Then Han and Chewie would need to get out of here on the Ninka. Firstly, because if the First Order (and Kylo Ren) got their hands on them. They would definitely face a long torture filled interrogation. Followed by a very public and very painful execution for the entire galaxy to watch as the heroes of the rebellion knelt before the First Order and died.

She also knew that if they were able to escape they could serve as a rallying force to bring others into the fight against the First Order. She knew that Han wanted nothing to do with the Resistance before Hosnian Prime. But she was confident that after all that had happened he would be eager to be back in the fight again.

After all, it had happened before with the Rebellion and Yavin.

Then again, they were both younger and far more easily compelled to the fight back then.

And the third reason she admitted was out of simple bias. She wanted to make sure that Han and Chewie had the best chance to survive this. Even if they survived and immediately fled to the Hutt pleasure worlds for the rest of their lives. She would prefer that then them being dead and/or tortured.

Once all this was explained to Ackbar he bent to her wishes and issued the orders.

Leia then turned her attention back to the monumental task of getting this Resistance back into action. The galaxy and the war raging across it would not wait for them. She also made a mental not to have her tracker bracelet sent to Holdo and Han on the Ninka.

Just in case.

 **Kuvira - POV**

Captain Canady stood before Grand Admiral Kuvira in the private meeting room reserved for the senior officers on board the Reclaimer.

The room was empty except for the two commanders and the door was firmly shut with Kuvira's two personnel Praetorian guards standing just outside.

Captain Canady was currently staring directly into Kuvira's face. His blue eyes determinedly locked onto her emerald green ones. His face was stoic, and it was carefully worked to conceal any emotion or anything that might reveal what he was thinking or feeling.

It was modelled on the face of his Grand Admiral. Kuvira's expression was once again a mask of professionalism. She stood with her arms clasped behind her back and her feet apart in the at ease stance.

Canady by contrast stood to attention as he waited for the Grand Admiral to open the conversation that would determine the course of his life beyond this day.

Assuming of course that her plans involved his life seeing another day.

Because while his body projected calmness. His insides were clenching and re-clenching within him as he fought to keep his stress and worry concealed.

He was a military man. He had long ago accepted the fact that his life was probably going to end violently and in battle. To serve in the Imperial and later First Order navy while being in fear of this fact was just ludicrous. He had outgrown his fear of this long ago.

But that did not mean he had no fear at all. Military or not he was a mortal man and feared death as much as anyone. But what he feared even more was for his life to end before he died. To be removed from his command and from any role of importance. To be sentenced to a middling unimportant role of no real significance for the rest of his life.

To be discarded and expected to live out the remainder of his dreary life in quiet obscurity, forgotten and useless. He knew that he would rather end it himself with quiet dignity then to accept such a fate until age robbed him of what he had left.

That was what had him so fearful of what the Grand Admiral would do to him in this meeting. His life would be determined in this room.

He could not help but think it would be ironic. He had been about to eat a blaster bolt when he had received the call to join the First Order. If his life ended that way now. It would be enough to put an ironic smile on his face as he pulled the trigger.

For a long moment he simply waited at attention as Grand Admiral Kuvira stared at him in silence. Her eyes were piercing, her jaw as set and her stance spoke of nothing but grim determination. He sore that his heart was doing its best to shatter through his ribs and out of his chest.

Finally, the silence was broken. It happened so suddenly that he felt like he might have a seizure when the Grand Admiral began to speak.

"Captain Canady. I expect you understand why I have called you here." Kuvira asked simply. The words were clearly question and one that demanded an answer.

Canady swallowed momentarily and began. "I do Grand Admiral. You have called me here to answer for my choices during the recent battle of D'Qar. More specifically my choices when giving commands to my crew and the targets that were selected for my dreadnaughts auto-cannons." He replied simply and without hesitation.

He knew that Kuvira had no patience for those who tried to hide their mistakes from her. Especially when they were as obvious as his had been. He also knew that those who attempted to plead or flatter her to reduce their punishment was not well received.

He was determined not too make the same mistake. He would answer all the questions honestly and accept whatever came of them.

Kuvira did not move or react in any way to his statement until she spoke again. "Can you elaborate on the choices you made and their consequences Captain?" She enquired.

There was no mockery or baiting in her tone of voice. Unlike Hux and others, she felt no need to compound someone's failures by rubbing them into their faces. She simply wanted Canady to say the words himself to make sure he understood the full weight of his actions and what they had caused.

Canady understood this and did not seek to hide from his failure. "I had in that moment of the battle to end the war with the Resistance. Or at the very least to cripple the Resistance to the point when recovery would have been near impossible." He paused as he remembered the moment in question. "But in my over eagerness and my short-sightedness I ordered my dreadnaught to target the Resistance base instead of their main cruiser. That was my error, Grand Admiral." He finished with complete honesty as he saw it.

Kuvira was silent for a moment. She appeared to be lost in thought. But Canady knew better. Grand Admiral Kuvira was never lost in thought.

Soon she replied. "What was going through your mind that made your make such a grievous tactical mistake, Captain? Someone of your military background and years of experience does not make such a mistake easily." She asked with clear intent in her voice.

Canady was starting to become confused. He had expected to come into a cold condemnation for his actions. Swift and to the point. But now it seemed that Kuvira was actually giving him some kind of psychological therapy. Or was she trying to make him see something in his actions that she had seen?

Regardless he knew he had to respond and within good time. "I cannot recall my exact thinking during the moment Grand Admiral. All I can recall is that the moment seemed so simple. We had finally found the Resistance base after all these years. We had already destroyed the Republic Senate with a devastating and unbeatable attack. I felt that we could accomplish this same feat with the dreadnaught. That like Hosnian Prime we could win a flawless victory in one attack. The Resistance base began my only focus in that moment. I confess, I acted far too rashly.

Canady fell into silence as his head bowed and he allowed his words to confess his thoughts as he told the Grand Admiral the only truth he could. He was not sure if it would please or enrage her but that was a moot point right now.

Kuvira nodded as she finished listening. "That was my reading of the situation as well, Captain. However, you were not the only one to act rashly to the detriment of the First Order and the galaxy." She said bluntly

Canady looked up sharply in clear confusion. "I also failed the Order today. Like you I was hasty in my planning and in my execution. I never felt the need to clarify my battle plans with greater details. My use of the words 'Primary target'." She broke off as a note of disgust came into her voice and across her face.

For a moment Canady was worried. But then he realised the disgusted was directed at herself. After a second she shook off her self-recriminations and continued.

"In hindsight it was an incredible vague and unhelpful designation with no clear clarification. It would be suitable for a children's game. Such an oversight and poor use of command communication has no place in any military and least of all one as great as ours where the responsibilities are so high."

Kuvira closed her eyes and let out a deep sigh. Canady was not sure if she was seeking strength as she was struggling to keep on with her personal condemnations. Or if she was simply taking a moment to truly face her failure and to let the impact of it truly seep into her mind.

After a moment she seemed to come back to herself. "I also allowed my impetuousness and my desire for a swift and grandiose end to this conflict with the Resistance to blind me to my duties. I made mistakes and chose expedience over tactical reasoning and strategic planning."

She stared Canady full in the eyes but there was no force behind it this time. "I failed you as much as you failed me, Captain Canady. And for that I apologise. It is an error I have vowed never to repeat. And for that reason, I am able to forgive your error of judgement at D'Qar. I am guilty of the same folly. And I am many things. But I am not hypocrite. It is in fact the one attribute that I cannot stand in anyone." She said with complete sincerity.

Canady felt himself relax. He had been given a reprieve. Forgiven for his oversight because Kuvira would not allow herself to punish subordinate for a crime that she saw herself as guilty of. He felt his stomach settle and his heart rate begin to return to a normal flow.

Or at least it did until Kuvira looked back at him again. And this time her eyes were burning with intensity and promise.

"That being said." Her tone suddenly changed. It was not threatening but it definitely contained an undertone of menace. "The First Order has no use for commanders who cannot display initiative and intuition when called for. Nor does it benefit from officers that need step by step orders to complete their duties successfully." She growled out.

Canady nodded in agreement. It was the only thing he could think to do.

"The tactical decision you made over D'Qar would not have been acceptable from a junior Lieutenant. Given your rank and service record I hold you to a considerably higher standard. I will not issue a punishment or demotions for this mistake as I have committed one myself. But I will expect you to ensure that you rectify your mindset and avoid any such mistake in the future."

She took a step forward to enhance her point. And Canady fought the urge to take several steps back.

"We will not speak of this event again Captain, and you will return to the Fulminatrix to continue your duties. You may consider this your 2nd chance." She paused and her eyes narrowed to the point when her eyes looked like jade pinpricks, piercing his soul.

"I strongly recommend you remember that I am not a firm believer in 3rd chances. And mark my words, there will not be a 4th." She said with her cutting like kyber crystals. "Are we clear?"

Canady gulped audibly despite his best efforts to remain stoic in the face of the grim threat. Once again he was reminded why this young woman of less then thirty years of age was the Grand Admiral of the First Order.

"Yes, Grand Admiral. Abundantly so." He said as he just managed to keep the tremor out of his voice.

Kuvira nodded and suddenly the menace and implied threat vanished from her voice, her face and her body stance. The aura of predatory dangers that had seemingly enveloped her also vanished and her calm discipline was back in full force.

If it was not for the nervous cold sweat that ran down his neck. Canady would have wondered if he had imagined it. It had been a momentary glimpse of the ruthless pragmatism that had allowed Kuvira to order the deaths of billions on Hosnian Prime. And the same trait that could easily see him crushed beneath her boot, scrapped off and discarded if she felt it was in the best interests of the First Order.

It had all lasted for only a moment. But that was enough. "You are dismissed Captain Canady." Kuvira said professionally and Canady offered a salute and made every effort to leave as quickly as dignity would allow.

Kuvira stood alone in the conference room for a while as she contemplated the necessary actions she would need to take to ensure that the war continued smoothly. It was while she was doing this that her commlink began to go off.

She pulled the device out of her pocket and activated the hologram feature. The blue image of Captain Peavey appeared in front of her. "Grand Admiral Kuvira" Peavey recited respectfully as he waited to be acknowledged and thereby given permission to continue.

"Yes Captain, what is the status of the fleet?" Kuvira asked. Getting straight to the point at hand as always.

Peavey quickly got to the heart of the matter. "The fleet is ready to jump at your command Grand Admiral. The system that Hux developed before his retirement has managed to work out the location of the surviving Resistance fleet based on the calculations and their records trajectory. They are located in a system less then a parsec away. It is likely that the damage they sustained getting out of D'Qar made it impossible for them to go any further. We are in a position to cut them off in that system before they are able to summon reinforcements or to make what repairs they can an jump out of the system. We only await your word."

Kuvira nodded as she took all the information in. "Excellent Captain. Order the fleet to be prepared to jump to the coordinates in five minutes. The longer we wait the more time we give the Resistance to escape or to abandon ship and slip away into the galaxy. We have an opportunity crush them all in their nest. We must not miss this chance."

Peavey nodded. "Understood Grand Admiral. The orders will be relayed to the fleet instantly. I will begin the countdown to lightspeed and place all fighters and weapons platforms on standby."

Kuvira nodded in return. "I expected nothing less Captain. I will re-join you on the bridge shortly. Ensure that Captain Canady's shuttle reaches the Fulminatrix before the lightspeed jump takes effect. We need the entirety of the fleet to maximise all chance of success and the dreadnaughts power will always be useful to the First fleet." She ordered.

Peavey inclined in acknowledgement. "Yes, Grand Admiral. It will be done."

Kuvira paused for a moment and then raised her hand to forestall Peavey's actions. "On second thought Captain. Contact Canady and inform him that the Fulminatrix is to remain in the D'Qar system. He is to take up orbit around the perimeters of the debris field and the remains of the planetary base. He will remain their unless he is called to action from myself or the Supreme Leader." She rectified.

"Grand Admiral?" Peavey asked in a questioning tone. Cleary he was not sure about the reason for this reversal.

Kuvira obliged him after a second. "The destruction of the Resistance base was quick and efficient. The Resistance did not even have time to complete a full evacuation of the planet. It stands to reason that they did not have enough time to notify all their allies that D'Qar had fallen. Therefore, we will likely see some Resistance stragglers returning to D'Qar to regroup with their leaders. If we leave a force in orbit around the planet we can destroy all the Resistance forces that come to the planet. Even if they escape we can catalogue what ships and people come to the planet and have them blacklisted as Resistance agents."

Peavey nodded in understanding, but slowly which indicated he had another concern with this plan. "I see your point Grand Admiral. But the Fulminatrix is one of our most powerful ships. The fleet might need tat power. We can leave a single star destroyer here to guard the planet. It should be more than enough fire power to combat any stragglers." He said with certainty while keeping his objection respectful.

Kuvira nodded in agreement. "I am sure you are right captain. But we have no intel on what forces the Resistance might have available or what New Republic remnants might arrive. The Fulminatrix is a ship that could stand up to an entire fleet by itself. While a Resurgent class would probably be enough. With a dreadnaught it is almost a certainty. Besides the fleet will still have ten Resurgent class ships to take on the shattered remnants of the General Organa's fleet. That should more then suffice on both areas." She finished with finality in her tone.

Peavey nodded his understanding "I will send out the orders now Grand Admiral. Will you be returning to the bridge for the jump to lightspeed?"

Kuvira nodded. "I am heading there now. Please ensure that all the fleet is ready to jump my mark." With that she closed down the commlink and moved towards the door.

As he made her way to the bridge with her guards trailing behind her. He allowed herself to consider the irony of the fact that it was thanks to Hux that she was able to track the Resistance fleet through hyperspace.

For once his 'charge ahead with brute force strategy' had actually borne fruit.

The process was simple yet undeniably effective and brilliant.

The First Order had access to all the astronomical data from the archives of the Empire and the Republic before it. Since those days the many First Order spies and agents in the New Republic had catalogued additional data to expand on their immense records.

Reports from scouts, briefings from trading guides, the downloaded records of captured smugglers. Even the whispered ramblings of those explores that were most likely mad. All of it had been recorded with due diligence.

As a result. The sensors on the selected ships with the outfitted technology. Could pinpoint the last known location of the targets trajectory and then tracking control analysed it against the data that had been recorded on the sector in question.

As a result of mathematical calculations done by their central computers, that would take a standard human century to process. The number of potential destinations was systematically reduced from trillions, then thousands, to hundreds, to a few dozen and finally only one.

After some necessary cross checking and confirmations of the initial analysis. The final confirmed calculation was confirmed and uploaded to the navi computer. After all it would not do to have their ships jumping to a random system without checking their work.

In this way, through Hux's simply ideology of battering the problem until it gave way. They were able to track their enemies anywhere across the known galaxy. It would obviously not work if they went to a place that existed on no known star maps. It was also possible that the Resistance had locations they had never revealed to any of their sources.

But it was highly unlikely.

Kuvira wondered if she should thank Hux for this achievement. Maybe even a reduction in the terms of his banishment to Starkiller base.

It was a possibility. But she supposed that even a broken time piece was correct once a day. It did not change the fact that it was broken.

Still it was not her primary concern right now. She had a fleet to catch.

And this time, there would be no mistakes.

As she neared the bridge her personal commlink went off again. Pausing in her stride so as to appear dignified she activated the function.

"Captain Yago?" She said as she tried to keep the surprise out of her voice. A Grand Admiral must appear undaunted and unflinching in any and all circumstances at all times.

Captain Yago was the captain of the Supremacy. Quite possibly the most powerful warship to have ever existed. Though calling it a mere warship was almost an insult.

The Supremacy was the sole Mega-class Star Dreadnought in the First Order's service with a colossal wingspan of 60 kilometers. Its construction was undertaken on an unprecedented scale. The First Order had seen the flaw of fixed planetary capitals. And now so had the New Republic. Therefore, they had decided that the Supremacy would act as the First Order's capital location. The home of the Supreme Leader and the headquarters of the Ministries of War, Logistics, Intelligence, Diplomacy, Economics and all others.

It also acted not only as the First Order's mobile capital. But as a mobile battle station and construction yard. It was capable of harboring, building, and conducting ship repairs for the First Order Navy in its onboard hangar bays, two of which were large enough to house and repair Resurgent-class Star Destroyers. Additionally, it carried production lines, shipyards, army training grounds and even R&D labs. The Supremacy also acted as one of the premier research labs and factories in the First Order, possessing industrial capabilities rivalling the most productive worlds under the regime's control. Its armoured decks housed departments reserved specifically for the conception, research, and approval of new weapons and technology. It also housed well-stocked raw materials reserves, eight durasteel foundries, an asteroid mining complex for harvesting raw materials directly from asteroid fields, as well as state-of-the-art production lines.

Because of all this, naturally the post of Captain of the Supremacy was a position that carried significant weight and responsibility. It was also often assumed that a command from the Captain of the ship carried the authority of the Supreme Leader himself.

"Grand Admiral Kuvira. Apologies for this call maam but I must be brief. The Supreme Leader has ordered that the coordinates of the Resistance fleet be uploaded to the Supremacy's central computer. He intends for the Supremacy to join your fleet as it destroys the Resistance." Yago relayed with an impassive expression. His years in the Imperial Navy had trained him well.

Kuvira was not overly happy about this development as it threw a large number of new variables into her plans. But an order was an order and she would obey it.

"Understood Captain. I will have the coordinates sent immediately." She paused as she debated about asking the question she wanted to ask. Her military professionalism waring with her own burning curiosity.

Finally, she was persuaded that this was a question she needed to ask. For… military logistics.

"Will there be any additional forces of people of import onboard or accompanying the Supremacy and the Supreme Leader?" She asked as she tried to keep the tentative hope out of her voice.

Captain Yago was not surprised by the question. It was a reasonable thing to ask when a battle was about to begin. "Yes, Grand Admiral. Lord Ren will be accompanying the Supreme Leader.

 **Leia – POV**

"General Organa. The fighter squadrons under Poe Dameron had made contact. They escaped from D'Qar with no further loss of life. They are in a remote system off the main hyper lanes and are asking for orders and the rendezvous coordinates." the comms officer stated as she looked up from her still slightly smoking comm station.

Leia felt a momentary stab of a headache as she heard Poe's name.

She turned away from the transparisteel window she had been looking out of as the steady stream of transports continued to form an orderly line between the Raddus and the Ninka. The transports were carrying all the people, materials and supplies that they could fit onto the smaller ship. It was going to be very crapped on the Ninka until they reached their planned destination. But that was preferable to being blown up on the derelict Raddus.

She turned her thoughts back to Poe.

She had planned to demote him from his position as Commander and have him listed simply as squadron leader.

He had proven to her that he still had far too much to learn about the realities of war and the responsibilities of command to be trusted with so many lives under his authority. Because of his recklessness. They had lost their entire bomber fleet and the vast majority of their fighter squadrons.

She did not blame Poe for the loses entirely. She knew that with their ambush discovered and the entire First Order fleet attacking that casualties were inevitable. But they could have fled the system with so many more of their people alive if Poe had not been so determined to have his personal vengeance against Kuvira and the First Order.

He had become obsessed in that moment of making the First Order and its Grand Admiral pay for what they had done to the Resistance and to the New Republic.

He did not care about the tactics or the realities of the battle or the needs of the larger war. He probably thought he was thinking of those in that exact moment. He probably convinced himself that he would be able to strike a critical blow for their side if he killed Kuvira. He would argue that they would not get a better opportunity to take her down and so that was worth the risk. Even in failure.

Poe might actually believe that. But Leia knew from experience that it was simply an excuse and a life to conceal the real truth. That in that moment Poe had wanted to kill. He wanted the blood of his enemies to flow to feel some measure of justice for the blood of their friends that had already been lost.

Poe could call it a necessary risk. One that would not even be discussed if he had pulled it off. But Leia saw it for what it was. It was rage.

And that was an attribute she could not allow in a commander for the Resistance at this time. She did not ask her people to feel nothing at all. But she did expect them to act with restraint and keep their emotions under control when they were in command.

Clearly Poe still needed to learn this lesson.

Until he did she should remove him from command.

Still with their situation as precarious as it was. She could not afford to upset the established chain of command and invite division to the ranks.

Poe would retain his command until the Resistance was established at the base on Crait. Once the Resistance was safe and able to take a breath to get things in order. Leia would demote him and give him a well-deserved slap across the face!

"Tell them to head for Crait and set begin to set up the base at the coordinates being sent to them now. The Ninka will join them once we are able to evacuate the Raddus personnel that we can to their ship. For now, tell them to maintain comm silence and head for Crait at once." She instructed the comm officer who nodded and began relaying the message.

After a few more minutes of frantic activity across the bridge and the entirety of the two ships. Another report came to her from Lieutenant Connix. "General, I was just informed that Captain Solo, Chewbacca and the First Order defector known as Finn have been transported to the Ninka. They are now secured in the medical bay." She said with a smile. Clearly she was happy to bring some good news on an already horrific day.

Leia breathed a sigh of relief. "Did they have any update on their conditions?" She asked.

Connix nodded with her smile fading a bit. "They stated that Captain Solo will be fine. His legs have received further treatment and he should be walking normally soon. Though they recommended he keep running to a minimum for a while."

"The former stromtrooper will pull through and should make a full recovery. However, he suffered internal bleeding and burns from the lightning he was hit with. Also, the battle caused a number of broken bones and a sever concussion. He is being kept under for the moment as the pain would be intense if he was conscious. But after some rest he should be fine."

"Chewbacca is the worst of them. He suffered less in terms of bodily injuries due to his size and strength. But that blade he took to the eye." She paused as she seemed to shiver at the thought. "He will not regain sight in that eye. It was completely destroyed by the blade. Thankfully the blade did not go deep enough to touch his brain or anything else vital. But they are worried that the wound might get infected as the flesh around the wound is slightly discoloured. They have given him antibiotics to treat for infection. But it is tricky with his Wookie biology and with the location of the wound. For now, his is stable and conscious. But they will need to keep track of the injury."

Leia nodded as she fought to keep back tears. The idea that the cheerful, loyal, affectionate and seemingly unstoppable Chewie was now half blind was a bitter pill to swallow.

She swallowed her grief and nodded her understanding. "Thank you Lieutenant. I suggest you get yourself to a transport now. The Ninka and her crew are going to need you for the long journey."

She held up her hand to forestall Connix's predictable comments that she was able to keep working on the Raddus. The girl was loyal almost to the point of turning it into a vice. "You have done all you can to help here Kaydel. Now you will be needed to help the Resistance survive." She spoke gently but the order in her soft words was clear.

Connix was silent for a while. Then she nodded her acceptance. With a salute she walked out of the bridge and began her journey to the hanger bays.

Leia turned her attention back to putting the shattered remnants of the Resistance forces back into order.

A short time later, her efforts were disrupted yet again.

"Proximity Alert!" Ackbar shouted in a way that was very unexpected from someone of his character. "Eleven in total. Ten signatures identical to those that attacked at D'Qar. The eleventh is…." He trailed off as his massive Mon Calamari eyes seemed to grow even larger. His mouth opened and closed as if he was trying to speak the words but could not.

Finally, he seemed to get a grip. "The Eleventh is massive, monolithic. It can only be the Supremacy!" He whispered/gurgled.

Leia flinched. Ackbar and her were two of the very select group of people on the Raddus who had heard the rumours of the titanic ship's existence. It had been revealed by intelligence brought to D'Qar just before the First Order had attacked. They had both hoped that the reports were fabricated or at best, exaggerated.

But like so many other prayers lately. This one had apparently gone unanswered.

"They found us." The sensor tech exclaimed just as they appeared.

Ten Resurgent class star destroyers suddenly appeared in the same wedge formation that had been used at D'Qar. One them, (the one at the centre of the formation) was very familiar.

But behind them came a ship that seemed to defy all logic. It was a ship that was built like a massive metal boomerang. It was at least 60 kilometres long and would made the Resistance fleet seem even more laughable when compared to the First Order's powerful force.

Leia did not have time to finish gaping at the ship. It was only because she had seen and remembered the likes of the Death Star that she was able to believe her eyes. Instead she turned her mind to the only thing she could think to do. The only think that might blunt the blow that the First Order was about to unleash on them.

She ran to the comm console and pushed the tech (not too gently) out of the way before she hailed the Ninka's bridge.

"Ninka! This is General Organa. I order you to jump into hyperspace now!" She yelled with all decorum absent as the true horror of the moment seeped into her.

"General, Leia we can…." Admrial Holdo began but Leia cut her off. Now was not the time for heroics or desperate last stands. This was a matter of the Resistance's survival.

"You can do anything Amilyn!" Leia yelled at her friend. "Nothing and no one can save the Raddus now. But the Resistance can still save the galaxy. But it needs to survive to do that! You must get your people and your ship to Crait. Meet up with Poe and use the tracker bracelet I sent with Han to find Luke. He is our only hope!"

Holdo was quiet for a second. Then she whispered feebly. "Leia, I.." She trailed off.

Leia nodded as her eyes began to glisten with unshed tears.

"I know. May the Force be with you." She said as she allowed the familiar farewell to pass her lips. "Now GO!" She shouted one final time.

Holdo did not respond. And at that moment a shower of green energy bolts came lancing from the First Order fleet towards the smaller ship.

Leia held her breath as her heart stood still in her chest.

But before the deadly blasts could reach the ship. The Ninka shot forward and disappeared into hyperspace.

Leia sank back into her stolen seat at the comm station as the Ninka vanished. But the relief was short lived as the energy attacks that had been intended for the Ninka slammed into the already heavily damaged Raddus. The Raddus's prototype shields that had been so useful had been placed on reserve power as the rest of the ship needed the rest to function and perform the evacuation of the ship.

As a result, the shields were only at 10% power and only the first three blasts were blocked before the shields failed.

"General, Admiral. We have just lost our shields!" One of the bridge crew shouted before they were thrown from their feet as the next wave of attacks slammed directly into the Raddus's hull. The entire ship shook as the hull was blasted by the turbo laster blasts and fresh chunks of the ship were torn out as the First Order bombarded it.

The lights that had been so painstakingly reactivated over the last few hours went out as sparks flew from the system consoles and the deck rocked as the secondary hanger (that contained the remaining transports and fighters) took a direct hit that punched through the weakened hull armour and ignited the full tanks.

A massive column of flame burst out of the ship like a small volcano before the vacuum extinguished the flames and the fire suppressants sealed the burning hanger bay.

The ship continued to shake, and explosions were becoming more frequent and deeper within the tattered remains of the ship.

"This is it." Leia thought as she struggled to remain seated and tried to look dignified to the bitter end. She had no more strategies. No more allies to call on. No Jedi knights or masters at her back. No escape tunnels or pods to head towards. And it seemed that the Force was out of miracles to give her.

There was no escape or victory this time. She had no response to the enemy that continued to blast them as their ship began to come apart around them.

"I always knew I would probably die like this when I was with the rebellion. But I did not think it would happen at this point in my life. Or that everything we worked for would come crashing down like it has. But I don't regret my life or too many of the choices I made. I helped give the galaxy three decades of freedom from the Empire and its tyranny. And I know even if I die. That whatever it takes, Poe, Luke Rey and Han will help save the galaxy from the First Order. I only wish that my Ben was with them as they did it. But if they saved Vader. I still believe they can save him, even if I won't be there to see it."

Leia bowed her head and closed her eyes as she prepared to face oblivion.

But it did not come.

"Admiral they have stopped firing and are hailing us." The comms officer whispered in disbelieve as she climbed back to her console from the ground.

Leia was unable to believe what she had just heard. It simply did not make any sense.

The First Order had them at their mercy. They could destroy the Raddus with everyone on it at will with no risk to themselves. They could do what they had been trying to do for years. And what the Empire had tried to do before them.

Destroy Leia Organa, Admiral Ackbar and most of the Resistance leadership in one blow. Why would they stop attacking them and invite them to talk?

While Leia was still trying to get the universe to make sense. Ackbar nodded for the tech to activate the communication channel and accept the First Order's transmission. After a second Leia agreed with the decision. They could lose nothing by talking. And it might buy them a few more precious moments. Maybe enough time for that miracle to appear.

So, she positioned herself in front of the projector and waited.

The blue image buzzed and fizzled a few times as the tech valiantly tried to bypass the destroyed or damaged systems to create a clear picture. After a few more seconds, an image appeared.

"We meet again, General Organa." Grand Admiral Kuvira said with her typical emotionless efficiency.

Leia would have glared at her enemy. But she found she was too tired in this moment for such a show of defiance. In stead she simply stood her ground and faced her enemy with all the grace and bearing a princess could show in a situation like this.

"Yes, though I would have preferred our time apart to be longer, and our reunion in better circumstances." She replied with no show or anger towards her young foe.

Kuvira raised an eyebrow at her words. "A strange thing to wish for General. If we had continued our attack or targeted your hyperdrive core from the start. Then our time apart would have been very long indeed." She pointed out with complete finality.

Leia was predictably unfazed. "And you know that better than anyone else here Grand Admiral Kuvira. I doubt the gunners of the First Order stopped firing out of the kindness of their hearts. So why did you order them to cease the attack?" she asked pointedly.

Kuvira was silent for a moment. Then she replied. "I had you in a similar situation recently. I offered you a way to avoid certain death for you and your followers. I offered you the chance to honourably surrender. And you spat in my face, with that attack from that naïve child Poe Dameron. Now I would be completely justified in blowing you and your Resistance remnants to ash and the galaxy would be well rid of all of you." She said calmly but with clear malevolence in the coolness of her voice.

Leia was not impressed with Kuvira's reasoning. "I seem to recall you had your dreadnaught ready to destroy us before the talks ended." She said snidely.

Kuvira waved off her comment. "A simple precaution and clearly a necessary one."

Leia decided to move this along. "Speak openly Admiral. Why have you spared us?"

Kuvira hesitated as if considering whether or not to ignore the question. Then she squared her shoulders and looked Leia dead in the eye. "Because there is enough of me in you to respect." She said quietly

Leia and the rest of the Raddus bridge crew stared in confusion at that statement. But Kuvira did not seem interested in continuing the discussion into her reasons.

"Your lives are in my hands and I should by all rights take them. However, you have fought for your cause and you fought for it well. Despite our differences I respect and commend you for it. Therefore, I am willing to offer you a final chance to surrender. If you do I can guarantee that your lives will be spared. I can only promise that for the leaders as you will likely face a life sentence in a remote but comfortable prison for high priority prisoners. The officers and decorated soldiers will likely face the same. But your common soldiers, technicians and supporters will probably be released after a few years. On probation to a First Order world."

"It might not sound terribly appealing, but it is the best I can offer with the Supreme Leaders consent." She summarised unconcernedly

Leia was not fooled by the seemingly generous offer. "You don't want us to die as martyrs to the Resistance and the New Republic. You know that if we die then others will be inspired to rise up against your evil regime. You know that we are of better use to you as defeated humiliated prisoners. That is why you want us alive." Leia stated as a fact not a question.

Kuvira's lips tightened. "I was not aware you were so suicidal General. If you had simply put a blaster bolt to your head you could have spared those who followed you a pointless death." She said with thinly concealed sarcasm.

"I am prepared to die for my cause Kuvira just like you would be for yours. I will not live the rest of my life and yours and Snoke's trophy. If my death here and now inspires even one person across the galaxy to stand up for what is right against you. Then I will consider it a meaningful death." She said with utter conviction.

Kuvira was clearly growing impatient with this back and forth. But she controlled her emotions and set her face in stone. "And what of the people on your ship General? Are they so willing to die as well? After all the galaxy might remember the name of Leia Organa. But who will remember or even care about the nameless pilot, tech or security guard who died with her? I wonder if they are quite so willing to make such an unlauded sacrifice for people who will never know they existed."

"And more to the point, will they willingly allow you to condemn them to death, like Bantha's for the slaughter. I wonder if I allowed them a few hours to make their thoughts heard on your ship. What would their reaction be to your callousness?" She finished with victory clear in her tone.

Leia winced. Kuvira was right. While her followers were willing to fight and die for the cause of the Resistance. That sacrifice was always much easier if it was believed to have a purpose. If the sacrifice would mean something.

Leia had already been informed of attempted desertions and had to have the escape pods placed under guard. But even the guards had to be watched as a few small scuffles had broken out between those who wanted to fight and those who wanted to flee.

If Kuvira allowed the Raddus more time with her ultimatum hanging over them the crew would quickly devolve into a civil war. It would be the ultimate propaganda victory for the First Order. Them standing aside in their unassailable might while the Resistance tore each other apart like mad beasts. It would prove their point about them being the order the galaxy needed and the Resistance being anarchists.

Their sacrifice would mean nothing. In fact, it would be a joke.

Kuvira interrupted her thoughts. "I will make this offer one last time General. I am prepared to accept your surrender with honour. If you refuse I will allow your ship to fall into anarchy. Failing that I will imprison you on that ship until you all starve to death. I am sure the galaxy will be inspired by their Resistance heroes eating each other. Only then will I allow you and your ship the dignity of being destroyed by the weapons of the First Order's first fleet."

"Make your choice. Surrender with dignity or die in disgrace." Kuvira finished coldly in a tone that made it clear she would do all she threatened and more if she was refused.

Leia looked around at the bridge crew. But found they were all looking to her with no solution to be found in their eyes.

Slowly, very slowly. Leia turned back to face her younger rival. Then with a tongue that felt like it was made of dunium. She spoke the words that she never thought she would be forced to say.

"I surrender."

 **Authors Note**

 **Wow, 10,000 words. That was an effort.**

 **I would like to apologies to those who reviewed my last chapter. I would normally respond to your reviewed individually in my standard way. But I have been having some problems with my computer and I want to upload this chapter before anything happens. So, my thanks too:**

 **TishaLiz**

 **Sage-Faerie of The Marsh**

 **AWriter159**

 **ChaosStar44**

 **Truth's Hierarch (Thank you for the longest review I have ever received. I really enjoyed reading it)**

 **Guest**

 **Sylphi**

 **Thanks for your reviews. Hope to hear from you again.**


	27. Chapter 27 - Surrender on the Supremacy

**arl1619: Thank you for your review. I am really glad you liked Kuvira's admission of her own mistake. The truly great military leaders in history have always been the ones who acknowledge if they have made errors and learned from the. Sun Tzu himself said that if orders are not followed due to confusion it is the fault of the commander. As for the surrender, like you said Kuvira will do anything to deny the Resistance martyrdom. She knows defeated foes are much better then dead heroes.**

 **Sylphi: Thank you for the review. I am glad you enjoyed the surrender moment and are looking forward to the next stage of Leia and Kuvira's dynamic. Most of it will be a surprise but I do not think mind tricks will play a part in it. At least not on Kuvira. They only work on the weak minded and the Grand Admiral does not fall into that category.**

 **Avatarlopes: The power couple of the First Order is still very much on. Their long separation was a combination of military/Sith need and building of suspense. It also allowed them a chance to take some distance from eachother and try to figure out what the hell is going on between them. Because for all the power the two of them have. In this matter they are virtually clueless. That is why they both took the opportunity to run back to the familiar when they had the chance. But now they will be force to confront it.**

 **As for Leia and Ben. Both in Canon and in Legends Leia seemed to always hold out hope that their children could be redeemed. Han seemed very quick to wash their hands of both Caedus and Kylo Ren. Leia was a bit more supportive. (Although not much in Caedus's case). I wanted to reflect that Leia is a marginally better parent then the useless Han Solo.**

 **ChaosStar44: Thanks for the review. I hope you enjoy this chapter just as much.**

 **Guest: Thank you for the review. Rest assured that is my hope. I have no love for the 'heroes'. The whole point of this story is to finally add some balance to the rebel and Jedi propaganda.**

 **Truth's Hierarch: As always I greatly appreciate and enjoy reading your long reviews. I am glad you liked my description of Leia's internal struggle and hardships. While I personally have never liked her I cannot deny her spirit and unbreakable resolve. Kuvira's is in many ways meant to be the same from the other side of the lines. I am really glad you liked Kuvira's admission of her own mistake. The truly great military leaders in history have always been the ones who acknowledge if they have made errors and learned from the. Sun Tzu himself said that if orders are not followed due to confusion it is the fault of the commander.**

 **As for Tam she will definitely be playing a large role in the story once enough time has passed for her pilot training and until I figure out how best to merge this story with Star Wars Resistance storylines. Also I havr watched the TIE Fighter - short film" by OtaKing77077. For obvious reasons it is one of my favourite start wars animated moments.**

 **C.E.W: Thank you for your review as always. I hope you enjoy this one. It contains some more details on why Kuvira does not see Luke as a credible threat. However her full feelings regarding the force will not be revealed for a while. Until I get the scene and the wording right. You raise an interesting point with Kuvira and Snoke. While Snoke is willing to give Kuvira ultimate control in military matters. He might be less willing of it conflicts with matters of the Force. Snoke holds his needs through the Force as supreme while Kuvira could not care less for the force. Will this lead to a conflict? Who knows?**

 **TishaLiz: Thank you for your review as always. I am glad you liked the date the previous chapter came out. Though that was more a happy coincidence than anything else. I will have Leia and Kuvira have a proper heart to heart in the next few chapters. For now I hope you enjoy this latest part.**

 **Sage-Faerie of The Marsh: Glad you liked the chapter. I agree with you about the Last Jedi chase scene. But we should remember that Empire Strikes Back was mostly chase scenes and a hyperdrive that failed no less than four times. Anyway. I hope you like this next instalment.**

 **Guest: I am glad you liked the chapter and all the parts involving the surrender. I hope you enjoy this chapter as I flesh those details out.**

 **Kksambo: No worries about reviewing or not. I always enjoy getting reviews but I don't hold it against people if they cannot. In regards to your other question. I do have the other pantheon story for the Percy Jackson series. I have four chapters ready to upload. But as I mentioned I am reluctant to upload them as I will not be updating them often while the Reclaimer is still being worked on. I don't have enough spare time to upload them both quickly. But I do not want stories to be sat there for months with no update. It annoys me when people have multiple stories that they take years to update. Still if you are interested in reading it I might look into uploading the pilot chapters.**

 **AWriter159: Thank you for you review. I hope you enjoy this chapter and the reunion details it has for Kuvira and Kylo Ren.**

 **Chapter 27 – Surrender on the Supremacy**

 **The Supremacy**

 **Kuvira POV**

The hanger of the Mega class star destroyer was currently playing host to a small army. Roughly two thousand stormtroopers were standing ready with their weapons primed and ready. But thankfully not aimed to fire. Not yet anyway. The army was split down the middle to allow a thousand troopers to stand in two square formations with a clear corridor running between them.

This corridor offered the soon to be arriving prisoners a great view of the hanger entrance. If they could see that far into the distance. The hanger was truly massive. It was large enough to house TIE fighters, transports, AT-ST's AT-AT's and even several versions of the new AT-M6's heavy assault walkers. And it was not even the largest of the ships hangers. There were two special hangers to allow a Resurgent class star destroyer to undergo a complete refit. Not including the eight docking bays that allowed other resurgent class to dock.

But that was exactly the reason why the orders had been issued to bring the surrendered Resistance fighters from the Raddus into this hanger on the prison transports. The first thing they would see when they exited the prison transport would be the hangers immense contains of weapons, troopers and fighters. Here the entire power of the First Order was on display.

The prisoners seeing all this would immediately realise just what manner of enemy they had been fighting. They would see the power and resources of the Order and compare it to the ragged assembly the Resistance had put together. They would see that they were hopelessly out matched and the idea that they could have ever won this war was nothing short of lunacy.

Along with the surrender of their legendary General, this would be the final blow to their hope and they would face despair. Not all of them would break, but most of them would. They would then become reluctant but compliant prisoners. And compliant prisoners were always preferred in the long run.

All this and more was considered by Grand Admiral Kuvira as she stood in front of her assembles soldiers and made her orders clear.

"The prisoners will arrive shortly. You are not to harm them or demean them in any way. If they resist you are welcome to use force. If they attack you are authorised to respond lethally. But you are only authorised to fire if first fired upon. Anyone who disobeys this order will answer to me." She proclaimed. The threat obvious despite the casual tone of her voice. That somehow seemed to make the threat even worse. "Am I understood?!" She called.

"Sir, Yes Sir!" The troopers called out with their affirmative echoing across the cavernous hanger. The First Order's soldiers received intense training from birth, adolescence or joining. But even without that they would have known better then to question such an important order.

Kuvira nodded her approval and turned back to face the hanger bay entrance. She stood in the front of the central corridor between her two contingents of soldiers. To either side of her stood her two personnel red armoured Praetorian guards. Their vibro weapons ready. Also to the side of her was her trusty Nephitina with her data pad in hand and a small hold out blaster on her waist. On the other side was Captain Yago who was here as was his right as Captain of the Supremacy.

Together the assembled group waited with their soldiers as the transports began to move from the captured and derelict Raddus to the Supremacy.

The First Order had sent in their elite shock trooper battalions to the Raddus to undertake the task of subduing any lingering resistance and securing the ship and the prisoners. It was a difficult task even with a ship that had formally surrendered.

After all while General Organa might have bowed to the inevitable he soldiers might not be as wise. Soldiers tended to only view the immediate picture rather than the overall reality. This might make them only consider that enemy troopers were coming to take them captive and nothing else. This could drive them into a death or glory mind-set.

This was a situation Kuvira would like to avoid as it would needlessly endanger the lives of her soldiers. And it might risk the loss of valuable Intel from the prisoners. Beyond that they held no value for her. But she was eager to maintain the dignity of both the Resistance and the First Order in this historic moment.

She did not want this clean and flawless surrender and victory to be tainted with un-needed violence.

As she mused she saw the first of the transports coming through the hanger shield and lower to the ground. Quickly followed by others as the line of shuttles moved from the Raddus. The transport lowered and the first rank of stormtroopers readied their weapons but did not take firing position.

The ramp opened and the shocktroopers exited first with their Resistance prisoners moving behind them. Steadily the troopers shooed the Resistance soldiers out of the transport and moved them in a steady stream down towards the assembled First Order forces.

Kuvira stood to the side as the assembled ranks past them, as did her guards, Yago and Nephitina. The soldiers led the captives through the gap between the stormtrooper forces and led them towards the entrance at the end of the hanger some distance away.

She had no real interest in these rank and file soldiers. But she did make a careful study of their faces as they filed past. They were staring at their boots as they walked forward. Glum and miserable. They did not even bother to look up at their enemies as they were marched off to prison.

There was the occasional enemy that showed a spark of defiance in a harsh glare or a back straight with pride. But for the most part they simply trudged across the hanger. With their shoulders slumped and their faces drawn.

They looked beaten.

Kuvira witnessed this with approval and no small satisfaction. The Resistance might linger own in some small scattered cells across the galaxy. But the organisations spirit might have already died. If so, it was a death Kuvira could celebrate.

The defeated soldiers made their way past the assembled ranks of the First Order. The Resistance soldiers looked dejected as they walked past in their mottled green and brown uniforms. Standing so close the flawless white armour of the stormtroopers. They looked extremely woebegone. They moved back out of the hanger under guard. They would be escorted to the holding cells in the detention centre. There they would remain until the surrender terms where finalised and they could be sent to a prison colony.

Soon the Resistance rank and file gave way to droids and other electronic equipment. The droids had been fitted with restraining bolts and the equipment was begin carried on servo lifts. The droids and the equipment would be taken to the analytics labs and searched for any data that might prove to be useful.

It was unlikely as the Resistance would never be so stupid as to not have wiped their archives clean before being boarded. But there was a chance the data could be recovered or that something had survived the purge.

After the droids, finally came the Resistance leadership surrounded by the most elite of the shocktrooper battalions. The leadership moved out of the transports with clearly more dignity then their rank and file followers. They moved with their shoulders squared, their backs straight and their eyes staring forward with a look of stern impassiveness.

Among them was Niel Numb, Lieutenant Guila Angira, Sergeant Derham Boyce, Major Nossit Cicer, Commander Larma D'Acy and Admiral Gial Ackbar.

Truly all useful prisoners and their capture was defiantly something to celebrate. But they all paled in comparison to the prize catch of the day. General Leia Organa

Her capture ensured that this would be a day long remembered. It would also ensure that the Resistance and their supporters across the galaxy would receive a blow to their morale that would likely never recover. It would also boost the morale of the First Order and their constituent worlds. It would make them see their victory as all but assured.

It would not affect the New Republic as much as she would like. To the majority of the New Republic, Leia Organa was a disgraced Politian known best as being the secret daughter of Darth Vader. She was regarded as a radical trying to relieve her glory days in the Resistance who had been ousted from the public eye for years. Her capture would need little to those in the New Republic who held such opinions.

Of course there was a chance that those opinions might have changed with the destruction of Hosnian Prime. Certainly some people in the New Republic navy would be devastated by the news. A number of them having been in the Rebellion.

Regardless of how this victory would be received across the galaxy. It was still a victory. And Kuvira was more than ready to take advantage of it.

But she noted that Leia was not walking like a prisoner. She strode between the flanking stormtroopers as though they were her own chosen royal guards. She walked down the transport ramp and marched towards Kuvira as though she was an invited guest who had come of her own accord.

Though she made no show of it. Kuvira was pleased. To accept defeat with grace and dignity was the difference between a true General and a short-sighted warlord. It was important for a true leader of men to claim victory with restraint and accept defeat with propriety.

It was one more piece of evidence that General Organa was an enemy worthy of respect.

But that did not mean that Kuvira would be hesitant in her surrender terms to the older woman.

When Leia arrived at the head of the Resistance leadership the Praetorian guards moved in front of their Grand Admiral and crossed their weapon staffs in an unmistakable gesture ordering them to halt.

For a moment Leia and Kuvira stared at each other between the crossed red lances of the praetorian guards. Warm chocolate brown eyes, stared into cold emerald green eyes. Each set of orbs containing immense power and resolve.

Like their eyes the two women could not have been more different in appearance. Leia with her grey hair, lines face and noble demeanour against Kuvira's black hair, tanned skin and military bearing. Their clothes separated them too. While both wore black, Leia wore Alderaanian morning garb in respect for Hosnian Prime with a number of decorative jewellery on her wrists and ears. Kuvira meanwhile wore her First Order uniform with her Grand Admiral greatcoat adorned only with her military ranks and accolades.

After what felt like an eternity, but was just a few minutes. Kuvira broke the silence as she waved her guards back to their previous positions at her side.

"General Organa." She said simply in greeting.

Leia did not seem surprised as she responded quickly. "Grand Admiral Kuvira." She responded in much the same tone as Kuvira. Neither quite knowing how this meeting would go and not sure what the tone of it would be.

Silence fell again for a few moment before Kuvira began again. "I have long wished to have the pleasure of a face to face conversation with you General. There were times when I contemplated going to Hosnian Prime on a state visit for just that purpose. But I never had the time." She said as what might have been called a smile creased up her lip. "The burdens of military life as I am sure you understand." She stated rather than questioned.

Leia responded coolly to Kuvira's remark. "I am flattered you found me such an interesting study Grand Admiral. I am sure there are many people across the galaxy who lament that they did not visit Hosnian Prime when they has the chance."

Kuvira did not even flinch at the implication. "To defeat an enemy you must know them General. And it was the Republic's inability to answer a simple question that led to the destruction of Hosnian Prime. Not even mentioning the role your Resistance played in starting this war."

Kuvira waved her hand as if it ward off any further argument between the two of them. "But we are here to arrange the formal surrender of the Resistance to the First Order. We should not waste time with recrimination." Kuvira said.

Leia hesitated for a moment before she responded. "You should know Grand Admiral. That I accepted the surrender offered to the Resistance soldiers on the Raddus. I did not speak for the rest of the Resistance out in the galaxy. Nor do I speak for the free people across the galaxy who will continue to resist you. This is the surrender of Leia Organa. Not the surrender of the Resistance." Leia replied waspishly.

Kuvira regarded her with clear scepticism. If she was a more vindictive woman she might have asked the General if there was truly a difference between the two.

As it was she simply replied. "As you say." With no further comment on the matter. "Then let us proceed with the formal surrender of this particular army of the Resistance. Shall we?" Kuvira asked as the stormtroopers behind her shuffled as they braced themselves for combat if the Resistance leadership refused this demand.

Leia nodded however and Kuvira turned to Nephitina and held out her hand expectantly. The faithful Twi'lek quickly pulled out a datapad and typed a few keys before she handed it to Kuvira.

Kuvira regarded the datapad for a few moments. Leia saw her green eyes moving quickly but carefully across the details laid out on the datapad. Clearly Kuvira had some skill in speed reading. Either that or she was simply skimming the details.

Finally she looked up at Leia, her face a professional mask. "I have drafted out an official document to validate the surrender terms I offered via the hologram. To begin, I propose to receive the surrender of the army of the Resistance under the command of Leia Organa on the following terms."

"To begin. The weapons, armour, and military property of the Resistance is to be parked and stacked, and turned over to the officers of the First Order to be appointed by Captain Yago to receive them. The private soldiers of no rank higher then Sergeant will be paroled after an incarceration period of no more than three years. They each man will be allowed to return to their homes, so long as they observe their parole and the laws of the First Order in force. They will also be expected to make routine follow ups on their parole status with a First Order representative to be assigned to them upon release. Violation of this parole will be met with resumed imprisonment or execution."

"In addition, they will also swear to not take up further action against the First Order in any form. Including but not limited too. Acts of Terrorism, political movements, larceny, piracy and open combat. Any violations of this stipulation will revoke any protection they have under First Order law and they will be executed on sight."

"The officers of the Resistance of a Lieutenant's rank or higher will be incarcerated indefinitely until such time as their extent of their actions against the First Order can be determined. The ranks of the Resistance command shall also be subject to this sentence until such time as their final sentence can be enacted."

"If the members of the Resistance Command Council accept these terms they will be spared from the sentence of execution. Failure to do so or any further acts of defiance will be met with lethal force."

Kuvira finished reading the datapad and turned it over so that Leia could see the end of the document and the thumb scan that Kuvira had imprinted on the biometric signature section. There was an identical biometric scanner on the other side of the data pad. Waiting for Leia to affix her own acceptance of the surrender terms.

Leia hesitated only for a moment before she took the datapad. As hard as this moment was she had made her decision and would not hesitate on it now.

She paused as her finger hovered over the biometric scanner. Her eyes quickly skimming over the terms and conditions of the surrender. After a few seconds she looked up at Kuvira. "There is no addendum demanding that I or the Resistance command council swear never to fight the First Order again. Is that deliberate or an oversight?" She asked curiously.

Kuvira eyed Leia with something that resembled sardonic humour. "If I had added that into the agreement. Would you have abided by it?" She asked pointedly. Upon seeing Leia's defiant expression she nodded. "Exactly." She said then gestured once more to the datapad.

This time Leia took the pad and pressed her thumb to the screen. Within a moment the scanner beeped and the surrender was signed.

Kuvira took the datapad back and handed it to Nephitina. "Have that transmitted to the Supreme Leader and then sent to every ship, fleet and planet in our dominion." She then turned to the escort guards on either side of the captured Resistance leaders. "Escort these prisoners to the maximum security detention wards. They are to be treated with all respect unless they resist. Ensure that they are comfortable. Secure, but comfortable." She ordered.

The guards nodded and moved into position to begin walking while Kuvira and her group began to move out of the way of the procession.

Suddenly there were the sounds of a commotion behind her and the unmistakable sounds of a struggle and a body falling to the floor. Before Kuvira could turn around or even fully register what was happening back there. The familiar sound of a blaster shot rang out through the air.

Kuvira's muscles tightened as she reflexively prepared to dodge. But before she could do so she was forcibly thrown to the floor by a sudden push on her shoulder. She came down in a crouch as she regain her balance from the sudden push and instinctively pivoted on her feet so that she was crouched down with her blaster pistol drawn from her belt.

As she aimed down the corridor of men that the Resistance prisoners had moved down and saw what the commotion had been caused by.

A Resistance soldier was standing apart from the rest of the column of prisoners with a blaster rifle in her hand. Said rifle was aimed squarely at Kuvira. The downed and clearly dazed stormtrooper on the hanger floor clearly showed where she had gotten the weapon from.

The woman human, shorter than normal, with a stoutness about her that gave her the image of a mechanic rather than a trained solider. She had dark eyes with tanned skin and black hair but not in the same manner as Kuvira herself. She also seemed to have a great deal of dirt a grease smeared across her face.

As Kuvira took stock of the situation she realised that her guards had been the ones to push her to the ground. She could only assume that meant that the original blaster bolt had been aimed at her. Based on the fact that the unknown soldier was aiming the rifle at her and the intense look of hatred in her eyes. That seemed a logical assumption.

As Kuvira watched the woman took aim again and fired. Screaming with incandescent rage as she did so. But the guards were ready and one of them threw themselves in front of their crouching Grand Admiral. Their iconic red armour with its unique shielding allowed the blaster bolt to be absorbed with no clear damage.

By now the rest of the First Order troops had woken up to the attack in their midst. The escort guards aimed their weapons at their assembled prisoners to make sure they did not get any ideas. The assembled army also closed ranks and aimed their weapons. And Kuvira's guards stepped to her one in front to guard against the would be assassin. The other took up position behind her to guard against attacks from Leia and the other Resistance leaders.

The woman soon found herself facing down the barrels of over two thousand blasters. She looked frenzied and desperate as her eyes darted in every direction. The Resistance soldier had clearly been relying on surprise to hit her target. She had acted with no plan or coordination with her comrades. Now that her attack had failed she was floundering in a hopeless situation with no way out.

With eyes that were wide in manic hysteria the woman took aim at Kuvira for a third time. Even though she must have known on some level that it was a wasted effort. Tears of grief, anger and rage burned within her eyes and her teeth were gritted as her lips pulled back in a snarl.

But before she could fire her stolen weapon again. A blaster bolt shot from the ceiling and buried itself in the Resistance attackers back. The woman cried out in pain and dropped to her knees as another blast flew into her side.

The impact send her to the floor, her weapon falling from her suddenly nerveless fingers as she curled in on herself. Screaming as a third blaster bolt slammed into her stomach.

She was quickly surrounded by five troopers who picked up her weapon and proceeded to beat the prone woman senseless. Raining down fists and kicks as she shouted in pain.

Kuvira stood back up as her guards fell back into position but kept their weapons activated. As the situation dialled back down, she glanced up at the hanger walkways. Standing up from her firing position, her sniper rifle still smoking, Captain Phasma stood to her full height on the walkway. When she saw Kuvira regarding her she saluted and readied her sniper rifle to fire again if need be.

Kuvira also saw the large number of snipers and troopers on the walkways above the assembled Resistance and First Order personnel.

She would have been foolish to not have some additional forces on hand when the Resistance soldiers came aboard. Having them in such an advantageous elevated position would have ended any potential battle that much faster.

Kuvira brushed herself off from her sudden push to the floor and regarded Leia Organa quickly. As she suspected there was not sign that the General had approved or known about this assassination attempt. That made sense. She knew that if Leia Organa had been involved in a plot to kill her. It would have been a lot less pathetic then that.

"I trust that you remember the terms of our treaty General?" She asked Leia suddenly.

Leia seemed to come to herself as she looked away from the moaning woman on the ground to face the Grand Admiral. "The prisoners will be treated well and cared for dependant on them offering no Resistance and never again taking up arms against the First Order." Kuvira elaborated as the General came to understand what she was implying. "I think we can all agree that her actions violate this agreement." She stated.

Leia looked like she wanted to protest. But looking into Kuvira's eyes must have shown her that it would be a waste of time. Instead she turned her gaze to the soldier on the floor as she twitched and sobbed from her injuries. Whether she was trying to catch her eye to offer some consolation or comfort. Kuvira did not know, nor care.

She turned her back to the General and made her way towards the downed assailant. The troopers quickly hurried the prisoners out of her way as they cleared a path. As Kuvira approached the Praetorian guards moved ahead of her and made their way towards the prisoner.

The two praetorian guards came to a stop before the sobbing bruised woman and took up their positions. One reached down and pulled the woman to her knee's bringing forth more cries of pain as her many injuries were jostled and irritated. The soldier then very ungently through her to the floor so that she was sitting forward in a kneeling position wither her torso splayed on the hanger floor. Her head hidden behind her sweating splayed hair.

The first guard stood behind her and took hold of her arms and held them behind her in a vice like grip. He hauled her head off the floor and kept it positioned in front of her. Keeping her in position as she knelt on the floor. It was unlikely that in her current condition she would have been able to fight off a loth cat. Let alone a member of the elite Praetorian guard. But given her recent assassination attempt it made no sense to be careless.

The second guard stood beside the prone woman and activated his vibro-voulge. The red energy blazing into life along the razor sharp blade.

He raised the weapon above his head and held in position ready to swing it down on the woman's neck. As he did so Kuvira watched the scene impassively while her soldiers kept the Resistance troops under guard. She could see that many of them were watching the scene unfold in horror. Others were looking on with outrage in their faces. And still others were looking away or closing their eyes. Either to not watch the grizzly scene or to pretend it did not exist.

The Resistance commanders along with Leia were watching the scene with grim stoicism.

A flash of light in the corner of her eye drew Kuvira's gaze. Turning back to the condemned woman on the floor she noticed something. A pendant of some kind was hanging down from a chain around her neck. It seemed to be made of some kind of golden material.

It seemed familiar to her. As it swung back and forth with the motion of its beaten wearer. There were clearly symbols etched into its crescent shape. Symbols which again struck her as familiar.

The guard adjusted his grip as he prepared to bring the weapon down.

"Hold." Kuvira ordered as she stepped towards the prone prisoner. The guard drew back and the second one kept his hands firmly on the woman's arms to keep her immobile. The woman herself raised her bloodied head at the word and stared at Kuvira through bleary eyes.

Kuvira bent down and took the golden pendant in her hand. The woman growled and started struggling at the sight. The second guard jabbed the butt his weapon staff into the woman's side and forced her to desist.

Kuvira studied the pendant very carefully. It was not gold as previously thought. But it was a metal that was very familiar to her. The inscriptions or glyphs were clearly intricate and very thorough in their layout. It was also clear that the pendant's crescent shape was intended to be placed with an identical one to produce a united whole.

That little cultural clue suddenly made her observation click. These were known as Otomok medallions. A cultural icon from a planet in the far outer rim near the unknown regions. The medallion was a stylized ensign of the Otomok system, representing the planet of Hays Minor. That also explained what the material was. It was known as Haysian smelt. And excellent conductor among other uses.

It was also very useful in the constructions of many things.

It explained why the pendant had looked familiar to her.

It also explained why the woman hated her so much to be willing to commit virtual suicide in a hopeless attack in the middle of the hanger.

"Hays Minor?" Kuvira asked the woman. Though it was more of a statement then a question.

The woman's head snapped up as her eyes blazed in fire. She stared at Kuvira and spat a glob of bloody saliva from her mouth. The glob of bodily fluid splattered against Kuvira's cheek. The guard slammed his spear shaft into the woman's gut and then slammed the end of the shaft down on her head.

The woman groaned as pain once more racked her body for her disobedience.

Kuvira moved her gloved hand across her face and removed the offending residue. She showed no sign of anger or even of offense. She simply stared at the tiny piece of metal in her hand.

For a long moment she said nothing as the entire hanger stared and waited for the hammer to fall. Finally Kuvira looked back at the woman.

"Hays Minor. In the Otomok system. Rich in mineral wealth, containing a passive society and brought under the control of the First Order by General Brendol Hux." Kuvira said as she stared at the pendant. And then to the woman on the ground.

"I read the reports of what happened to that planet while under Hux's administration. I can see that you survived and escaped to the Resistance. That would explain your actions here and now." She stated.

The woman looked up at her again. "Are you going to gloat at how you used the weapons my people were forced to build to conquer other planets like ours? After you used them on us for target practice." She hissed in contempt.

Kuvira remained un-daunted. "No, in fact I was going to offer my apologies." She said flatly.

The hanger seemed to thrum with energy as the silence became truly oppressive. The First Order soldiers were too disciplined to react. But many of them were glad they were wearing fully covering helmets as their eyes bulged in amazement and their jaws almost unhinged themselves.

They had just heard Grand Admiral Kuvira, one of the ruling triumvirate for the entire First Order, apologise to a Resistance grease monkey that had just tried to kill her!

Even the officers were in shock though trying to conceal it. The only person who did not seem surprised was Nephitina. She was simply smiling as she typed into her datapad. But then, the Twi'lek spent a lot of time with Kuvira. More than anyone else in the entire First Order.

The Resistance members were also looking surprised. The woman herself looked up in shock before her eyes narrowed in suspicion. Kuvira allowed her a few moments to collect her thought before she continued.

"As I said. I have read the reports on what happened on Hays Minor." She said as her lip curled in distaste. "It was a travesty. A monument to the sadistic, brutal, short-sighted methods that Brendol Hux lived by. It was the only way he was capable of. The only way his limited barbaric mind could comprehend. It is a primal mind-set that I came to associate with him and later his equally vicious son Armitage Hux." She ranted as she kept a tight lid on her stronger emotions. Keeping her voice cool an analytical.

"Instead of overseeing its administration and annexation properly. He went in with brute force and turned a populated vibrant world into a polluted and depleted penal colony. If he had overseen the planet properly, Hays Minor would be a thriving world. Protected by our armies and fleets and with your planets minerals exchanged for advances in technology and off world opportunity." She explained as the woman's eyes never left her face.

"I wish I could have rectified the situation but I was not in command back then. At the time I was a Captain serving under Grand Admiral Rae Sloane. If I had been. I would have had Brendol Hux shot for his actions on your planet and the damage he did to the First Order. But by the time I was promoted to Admiral Brendol Hux was dead and the damage had been done."

"I can understand that sometimes we must do bloody and unforgiving things for the cause. I have commanded and been responsible for more deaths then I can begin to count. But it always has a purpose. It is always with a greater good in mind. What Brendol did to your people was simply a mindless act of savagery. There was simply no need for it. That is something I cannot abide."

Kuvira stood up straight and regarded the woman with an expression that was not pity but held a clear sincerity as she looked down on her. "I Kuvira, Grand Admiral of the First Order, and commander in chief of all its armies. Formally apologise for the suffering of your world." As she spoke she gestured to the waiting Praetorian guard.

The guard stepped forward and raised his vibro-voulge, the red energy bursting back into existence as the blade came back up. But the woman did not seem to notice. She was too busy staring at Kuvira.

The Grand Admiral could see the emotions warring on her face. Rage, confusion, hatred, sadness, understanding, regret. But she could not seem to select one to embrace in this moment.

Kuvira continued as the Praetorian Guard readied himself. "I cannot restore your world to life or bring back those that Hux's stupidly condemned. But I can promise you that now that I am Grand Admiral, with the support of Lord Ren and the Supreme Leader. No world under our rule will face such unnecessary horrors again."

Kuvira took a step back as she spoke. It was subtle and the woman seemed not to realise what the purpose behind the move was.

(That Kuvira did not want to get blood on her boots)

Kuvira turned to the woman for a final time as she held her undivided attention. "I am truly sorry. For what happened to you." She said sincerely before she gave a small nod of her head.

The guard reacted instantly. With the speed and strength in perfect combination he brought down his weapon on the Resistance engineer. The blade hitting its intended target (her neck) flawlessly.

Kuvira turned away as the body fell to the floor and the severed head began rolling away before one of the soldiers stopped it with their boot.

Kuvira briefly regarded the pendant lying in a growing puddle of blood that was still spurting from the severed neck of its previous owner. She was sure the cleaning crews would either find a use for the valuable metal or dispose of it. Either way it was not her concern.

As she made her way out of the hanger she saw the train of Resistance prisoners begin to continue their journey to the cells on the detention levels. They were carefully trying to avoid the blood and the corpse that was being dragged away by cleaning crews. It would be thrown in the incinerator later.

For now she had to report the evens of today to the Supreme Leader.

 **The Throne Room**

 **Kuvira - POV**

"Hahaha, well done Grand Admiral. My faith in you has been rewarded ten fold." Supreme Leader Snoke chucked as he sat on his throne. His golden robes draped around his desiccated body as he laughed out his mirth. The rest of the Praetorian Guard stood around him while the two guards assigned to Kuvira re-joined their fellows.

The message was simple but clear. They might be assigned to protect the Grand Admiral. But their ultimate loyalty was to the Supreme Leader

Kuvira remained where she was as she knelt on one knee with her head bowed. Her black greatcoat splayed on the floor around her. She kept her eyes to the ground as she accepted the praise from her Supreme Leader.

This was the only situation when the Grand Admiral's knees touched the ground.

"The Resistance base destroyed. The Resistance fleet ravaged and most of their leadership captured. These victories are only surpassed by the crowning achievement. The capture of Leia Organa. With her as our prisoner the Resistance is leaderless and devoid of their figureheads to inspire them. Our victory has become considerably closer due to your efforts, Grand Admiral." Snoke proclaimed as he raised his hand in a gesture.

Kuvira felt an inviable presence take hold her body and soon she was slowly rising of the floor. Soon she was gently deposited off her knees and on her feet as the Supreme Leader displayed his power along with his congratulations.

Kuvira considered it a waste of effort as she was perfectly capable of rising to her feet on her own power. But she understood that subtle reminders of his immense power in the Force was one of the Supreme Leaders preferred methods of reminding his subordinates just who ruled. It was probably also intended as a gesture to show his appreciation.

Tedious though it may be she could understand the usefulness of such grandstanding. After all one did not remain in command of such vast armies commanded by ambitious generals without an occasional demonstration.

"The Resistance is scattered and their morale is demolished. Now is the time when their desperation will force them to seek out skywalker with greater intensity. He will sense his sister's plight across the galaxy. And this will be the perfect bait to draw him out into the open. We must prepare to move on him and the rest of the Resistance." Snoke proclaimed.

Kuvira was too disciplined to roll her eyes. But she was unable to have the stray emotions run through her mind. When faced with a being as powerful as the Supreme Leader. She might as well have shouted her thoughts to the sky.

"Your thoughts are laid bare, Grand Admiral Kuvira." The Supreme Leader said softly as Kuvira met his gaze. Her emerald eyes meeting his cobalt blue orbs. "You feel that my priorities are misplaced." The words were spoken with no malice or accusation. They were simply a statement of fact.

Kuvira never lied to the Supreme Leader. There would be no point. Despite all her mental discipline and her intense focus. She was unable to conceal her mind from him. Against neophyte force uses like Rey she would protect her mind quite well. But against Snoke's power her mind was an open book.

Besides she knew that unlike Darth Vader. The Supreme Leader would not kill her for simply voicing her opinion. Snoke had no use for yes men and sycophants. He needed those who would speak honestly to serve him. And he knew that.

"Forgive me Supreme Leader. But I must once again state that we waste far too many resources on matters related to skywalker. The coward fled into the dark of the galaxy to live the life of a hermit years ago. He clearly does not intend to come back. And even if he did. For all his power, for all his achievements, he is one man. We have an entire galaxy to conquer and reorganise into a new and stable state."

"Our concerns and tasks are legion. We have the Resistance to mop up and the New Republic remnants to defeat. We are still at war. Despite the destruction of the senate we have had no official surrender from the New Republic government. Until we receive one we must remain fully committed to our goal of retaking the galaxy. The concerns of one man are irrelevant compared to that. Regardless of who he is." Kuvira said flatly and without any hesitation.

Snoke was silent for a moment as he regarded Kuvira. Kuvira felt tension but not fear. She knew that the Supreme Leader would indulge her arguments. And if he provided her with an answer she would understand in terms of military and logistics. So much the better.

"Do you not feel that the Emperor and Lord Vader might have felt the same thing as you Grand Admiral. And yet that one man brought about the death of Palpatine, the ruination of Lord Vader and the collapse of the Empire." Snoke asked.

Kuvira's rebuttal came at the speed of light. "A situation that was only allowed to happen due to the Emperor and Vader's foolish determination to bring skywalker in alive. They had him at their mercy on Bespin, Endor and a dozen other places. If either of them had simply driven their lightsaber into his chest or snapped his neck, the Empire would have prevailed." She expressed with a small amount of disgust in her voice.

"We are not hindered by the same idiocy. If Skywalker returns we will not waste time trying to 'turn' him. And I have no interest in a dramatic lightsaber duel. As soon as we have a location I will order the entire fleet to turn the planet he is on into a smoking cinder. I doubt even the great Jedi Master can survive that." Kuvira stated a bit tersely for her own liking. She normally never speak with anything even approaching disrespect. She must be tired after the events of the last few days. She would need to rest soon.

Snoke rose from his throne and 'walked' towards Kuvira, his movements jerky as he moved his half crippled body with his golden slippers designed to limit the pain of walking on his feet. The gnarled appearance of his body belied his power so much that Kuvira could not help but wonder if it was an intentional trap.

She bowed her head as he approached but did not kneel again.

Snoke stopped in front of her as he began to speak. "You have often impressed upon me the need for our war on the New Republic to be more than just simple conquest, Grand Admiral. You have often made certain that we proceed with hearts and minds in consideration. Not all of your fellow commanders have agreed with you. But I think we can agree that results have vindicated your decision." The Supreme Leader stated as he stood before the Grand Admiral.

Kuvira nodded. "The worlds in our territory quiet and mostly pacified. The centrist worlds seceding to us each day. War guilt laid at the feet or the Resistance. I think the results speak for themselves Supreme Leader." She agreed.

Snoke nodded. "Indeed. But you fail to realise that Skywalker must also be treated with the same considerations in mind. Skywalker is one man as you say but he is also more then that in the minds of the people across the galaxy. To them he is more then a man. More then a Jedi. He is a symbol. A symbol of defiance, or rebellion. As long as he lives, hope for our destruction lives in the galaxy."

"Even if he is dead, people will continue to believe in him. They will continue to be inspired by him. They will continue to hope that he will come to save them." Snoke paused as he allowed the weight of his words to gather. "And that is why we need to show the galaxy his bloodied and beaten corpse. To show them his body hung from our flagship and his head mounted on my wall. Only then will we kill both luke skywalker the man, and luke skywalker the myth."

Snoke turned and made his way back to his throne and sat down with care. "That is why we must ensure that we continue to pursue Skwalker. Because as soon as we kill him our control over the galaxy is that much more secure." He finished.

Kuvira considered for a moment. She saw the logic in the Supreme Leader's plan. But she was not convinced that this was purely a logical move and not the Supreme Leader trying to settle the ancient grudge between the light side and the dark side.

Still she knew when she had been given an order.

She bowed her head in acknowledgement. "Understood Supreme Leader, we will continue the search. In addition to the campaign against the Republic." She tacked on to the end.

Snoke nodded and made a gesture with his hand. "You are dismissed Grand Admiral. Continue your work against our enemies."

Kuvira offered a crisp salute, spun on her heel and began to move down the walkway towards the turbo life that would take her down to the command deck. From there she could oversee preparations and then make her way back to the Reclaimer to launch their next advance into Republic space.

As he walked down the walkway he noticed that a figure was making their way down the opposite way towards her and the Supreme Leader.

A figure dressed all in black.

Kylo Ren strode down the throne rooms walkway with a commanding self-confidence and commanding bearing that was becoming more and more obvious in his manner these days. His black cloak billowing out behind him. His iconic mask firmly in place.

As he and Kuvira made their way towards each other a thousand feelings rippled through the Force. They were both too disciplined and focused to turn their heads to face each other. At least not in the presence of the Supreme Leader and the guards. But their eyes did turn towards each other as they came within reach of the other.

As they passed by each other on the walkway the tension became almost palpable in the air.

Unaware of the storm of emotions.

Or possibly because of them. The Supreme Leader immediately called out to his apprentice. With a barely noticeable hesitation in his step. The dark apprentice continued towards his master. While the Grand Admiral made her way out of the room and into the elevator without a backward glance.

 **Later**

 **Kylo Ren - POV**

Kylo Ren rode the elevator down from the throne room with his emotions roiling inside him. It was bad enough that his mother…..

That General Leia Organa was on the Supremacy. But he had finally seen Kuvira again since Starkiller base and they had not even managed to exchange a word to each other.

He was still contemplating the situation he found himself in when the door to the elevator opened and he found himself face to face with Kuvira.

She was standing with her arms folded across her chest, back straight and her eyes boring into him.

Kylo was allowed a brief moment to wonder how she had known when he would arrive or what level he would get out on. Before she cut of his previous thoughts completely.

"We need to talk, Lord Ren. My quarters. One hour" She said in a voice that allowed no argument.

Without giving the dark lord a second to reply she turned and strode down the corridor. Leaving Kylo Ren glad that his mask covered his stunned expression.

 **Authors Note**

 **200,000 words! Wow I need a drink.**

 **Anyway my apologies that this chapter took so long. I had it written almost a month ago and was nearly finished. Then my computer crashed and I had to have it professionally fixed. In the process I lost all my files, including this chapter.**

 **I was really pissed off and did not start it again for a while. Then I had a medical matter that laid me up for a while.**

 **But I finally managed to get this uploaded. I hope you enjoyed it and found it worth the wait. As always reviews are always appreciated.**


	28. Chapter 28 - The Talk

**Sylphi: Glad you liked the chapter. Yeah PC issues are something which are inevitable but always seem to happen at the worst possible time. I am alright. Recovering from a botched foot surgery. But nothing serious, just hindering. Anyway I hope you enjoy this chapter.**

 **TishaLiz: As always glad to hear you liked the chapter. I am glad you liked Rose's death. Without the chase scene I could not see much reason to keep her around. And given her fanatical hatred for the First Order I could not see her surrendering to captivity. She would want to launch a desperate suicide attack to hurt the First Order as much as possible before dying to join her sister. I hope you enjoy this chapter and the development in Kuvira and Kylo's relationship.**

 **Guest: Glad to hear you liked the chapter. I am glad that you enjoyed the interactions between Leia and Kuvira. They are both similar and yet different in so many ways it allows for a mutual respect. And I have always found those enemies to be much more interesting than those that simply hate each other. I am going to continue to update while I put my plan together for incorporating Episode 9.**

 **Sage-Faerie of The Marsh: I admit that there is a difference between the two chase scenes in Episode 4 and 8. I try to give the writers a break as we Star Wars fans are almost impossible to please. As for your question about Kuvira turning on Snoke. Yes if she felt he had become a determent to the First Order she would turn on him. Kuvira is loyal to the First Order, not to any one individual. But as long as Snoke continues to be an effective ruler she will stand by him. She is not willing to risk a civil war in a struggle for the throne. As for Rose, without the chase scene I could not see much reason to keep her around. And given her fanatical hatred for the First Order I could not see her surrendering to captivity. She would want to launch a desperate suicide attack to hurt the First Order as much as possible before dying to join her sister.**

 **buzzsaw935: Thanks for the review. This meeting was hard to write but I hope you enjoy it.**

 **Guest: I am still putting my plans for Episode 9 together. But Kuvira hates Palpatine with a passion and will not be bowing to him. That much I can promise.**

 **Guest: The majority of First Order Stromtroopers are still human. However due to Kuvira's new reforms there are a large number of Near-Human stormtroopers. Races like Twi'leks, Chiss, Mirialans, Pantorans, Epicanthix, etc are welcome to join the First Order ranks. Kuvira wants to extend that to all races. But even she is having trouble getting the Imperial old guard to accept Duros, Neimodians, Genosians, and other more alien races.**

 **Truth's Hierarch: As always I deeply appreciate the length of your reviews and the obvious though your put into them.** **Glad to hear you liked the chapter. I am glad that you enjoyed the interactions between Leia and Kuvira. They are both similar and yet different in so many ways it allows for a mutual respect. And I have always found those enemies to be much more interesting than those that simply hate each other. Besides Kuvira knows that it was the Empire's endless iron fisting that led to its downfall. She is determined to have the First Order be different. Relentless in war, Merciful in victory.**

 **In regards Hays Minor. Kuvira is not blind to what happened there. Kuvira as we have seen is perfectly willing to condemn entire planets to destruction. But for her the difference between her and people like Hux and Palpatine is that she takes no sadistic joy in what she does. She does not enjoy cruelty. For her violence is a tool, not a crutch. So a case like Hays Minor to her only highlights everything wrong with the old mind set she is determined to change. She was after all the protégé of Grand Admiral Rae Sloane. She remembers what Sloane told her the First Order is meant to be. 'To start over, and to get it right this time.'**

 **As for Snoke, yeah I believe that he should have been around for longer. But from what little I saw he seemed to be a much more competent leader then Palpatine who was a complete megalomaniac. Kuvira will be loyal to him as long as he remains a competent leader. If he however starts to place then needs of the Force over the First Order. That might change.**

 **In regards to the status of the Resistance. After this chapter I am going to write out some Interlude chapters. We will have a glimpse of the rest of the galaxy and the Resistance then.**

 **ChaosStar44: Thank you for your comment. That means a lot to hear.**

 **Kai: Thank you for your very welcome review. It always means a lot to hear things like that from my readers. Hope you had a good Christmas.**

 **kanukaianderson123: Glad to hear you are enjoying the story. I hope you will enjoy this chapter as well. Reviews are always welcome and help to inspire me to continue it.**

 **Richiesarah: Very glad to read your review. I am glad you are enjoying the changes in the story. Though I try to give the writers a break as we Star Wars fans are very hard to please. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter as well.**

 **Guest: I am still putting my plans for Episode 9 together, though I have some ideas. As for how Kuvira will react to Palpatine's return. Well she hates Palpatine and will not be bowing down to him. That much I can promise.**

 **AWriter159: I am really glad you are enjoying the story. I am still putting my plans for Episode 9 together. I am conflicted about the movie. It was a great visual treat. But I take issue with some parts. Most of all Kylo Ren's actions, Rey's ancestry and the endless damn plot armour. So I will definitely be making some changes.**

 **C.E.W: Kuvira does take issue with Snoke's priorities some times and she is loyal to the First Order over him. But as long as remains a capable ruler she will continue to be loyal to him. She is not willing to risk a civil war for the throne unless sees no other choice. As for Episode 9,** **I am still putting my plans for Episode 9 together, though I have some ideas. As for how Kuvira will react to Palpatine's return. Well she hates Palpatine and will not be bowing down to him. That much I can promise.**

 **Guest: Thank you for your review. I confess that episode 9 has forced me to rethink a few things. But I am putting a plan together to incorporate it into this story.**

 **CatNich: Thanks for the review. I don't mind when they come in as I always enjoy reading them. I am glad you like the story. I am an Imperial and First Order supporter as well. I am going to see how well the 'heroes' do without plot armour.**

 **WitchofDuva: Thanks for the review. Glad you are enjoying the story. I hope you like this chapter as much.**

 **Kksambo:** **Glad to hear you liked the chapter. I am glad that you enjoyed the interactions between Leia and Kuvira. They are both similar and yet different in so many ways it allows for a mutual respect. And I have always found those enemies to be much more interesting than those that simply hate each other.** **I am glad you liked Rose's death. Without the chase scene I could not see much reason to keep her around. And given her fanatical hatred for the First Order I could not see her surrendering to captivity. She would want to launch a desperate suicide attack to hurt the First Order as much as possible before dying to join her sister. In regards to your point about Kuvira and Phasma bonding. That might be tricky as we know that Phasma is only loyal to herself rather than the First Order. A fact that Kuvira already suspects and will not tolerate. Especially not if she finds out she shut down Starkiller's shields. As for Snoke, yeah I believe that he should have been around for longer. But from what little I saw he seemed to be a much more competent leader then Palpatine who was a complete megalomaniac. Kuvira will be loyal to him as long as he remains a competent leader. If he however starts to place then needs of the Force over the First Order. That might change.**

 **As for my Percy Jackson story. I will think about uploading the intro chapters.**

 **Guet: Thanks for the review. I am glad you like the story. As for Terex he might reappear. I like him as well which is why I changed his fate and made him the head of the FOSB. As for how much he will appear I cannot say yet. I will be looking for an opportunity to include him if possible.**

 **Chapter 28 – The Talk**

 **The Supremacy**

 **Kylo Ren – POV**

Kylo Ren stood in front of the door to the Grand Admiral's quarters. This suite was reserved for her while she was on board the Mega Star destroyer and was one of the finest accommodations within the giant mobile capital of the First Order.

The two Praetorian guards that guarded the Grand Admiral were positioned as usual on either side of the door. The weapons were deactivated and they showed no weariness from his arrival. Clearly they had been told to expect him. It irked him a little that the Grand Admiral had simply expected him to heed her summons like some kind of underling. But that feeling was quickly brushed aside in the face of what he was here to discuss.

He paused outside the door for a moment as he tried to summon the will to open the door. The guards made no effort to hurry him. Clearly they were used to people showing this kind of hesitance when summoned to the Grand Admiral.

He considered the events that had led him to this moment. Starting with the battle on Starkiller and his encounter with his father. The lightsaber battle on Starkiller base. And ending with the make out session with the Grand Admiral in the cockpit of her own TIE fighter.

He had no illusions what Kuvira wanted to discuss with him now. In truth he had been eager to resume their conversation immediately after Hux's banishment. But his master and her obligations had not allowed that. But now the dark side had brought them back together and she clearly demanded to finish what they had started. It was something he had awaited with anticipation for many days.

So why was he standing outside her door like a lost gizka?

He forced his nerves and his doubts to the side and called on his passion and his pride. He was Kylo Ren, heir to Darth Vader and apprentice to the most powerful being in the galaxy! He would not hesitate in front of a girl's door like a child on his first date!

Summoning his power and resolve he opened the door and stepped inside with no obvious hesitation.

Kuvira was standing opposite him across the room as she read through the datapad in her hands. The datapad (from what he could see of it) was a detailed description of the movements, targets and projected timetables for the 2nd and 3rd fleets. She was scrolling her hand across the screen as she made adjustments and predictions of when Coreilla and Chandrila would be in their possession.

The sooner they were under First Order rule. The sooner the Resistance would be cut off from valuable allies and they could begin their advance into the deep core systems.

As he entered, she looked up. There was no surprise or visible emotional reaction of any kind that he could see. In the force it was a different story.

She experienced a brief flash of elation when she saw him enter. But it was quickly snuffed out as her discipline locked down. Then he felt, reluctance, uncertainty and even a note of fear enter into her aura. Clearly this was a meeting that she was just as conflicted about as himself. But before he could feel anymore her mental barriers went up and he would have had to exert more power to uncover her feelings.

He was not willing to do that. One way or another, he would know where both of them stood by the end of this conversation.

He stopped in the centre of the room as Kuvira placed her datapad down and moved forwards to meet him. They stopped in unison when they were about a metre apart almost as if they had each slammed into an invisible wall between the two of them. He supposed that was accurate in many ways.

For a long moment, nothing happened as they both stared at each other. His newly molten gold eyes connected with her emerald green eyes. It was a contest of strength as with so many things in their lives. But unlike those, this contest had no defiance or malice behind it. It was simply a match of wills to see who would break first and acknowledge the situation they were in.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity but was at most a minute. Kuvira grew tired of this childish game and broke the silence.

"The capture of the Resistance leadership is a major victory Lord Ren. I trust I can rely on your aid when interrogating the leadership for information on their escaped comrades?" She asked in the same professional voice she always used when discussing military matters.

Ren was silent for a moment before he responded. "I will aid you in the interrogations. However I will not be able to assist in the questioning of General Organa. Her force abilities and mental training will prevent me from entering her mind. If I tried to force my way past her barriers, it will likely render her brain dead." He said, even though he knew that was not the only reason he did not want to be in Leia Organa's presence.

Despite his increase in power and new commitment to the dark side. He was worried that seeing his mother again might make him hesitate. That it might lead to him falling back into his weak habits. That was something he was not willing to risk. At least not yet.

He was certain that the Grand Admiral knew it as well. But she did not press the issue.

Instead she simply nodded and continued. "The Supreme Leader has commanded that in addition to our invasion plans. We must increase our efforts in the search for Luke Skywalker. Since we have lost the map and Rey. We will needed to carefully monitor the Resistance's movements. They will undoubtedly run to retrieve him the first chance they get. If they have not done so already."

"Will you and the Knights of Ren be able to assist in this? Search for them through the Force?" She asked as she acknowledged her limited interest and understanding of the ways of the Force.

Kylo Ren was silent as he considered it before he responded. "I can deploy the Knights and will search for the girl. Skywalker himself is too well protected." He paused as he regarded the Grand Admiral. "But this is not the conversation you called he here to have Grand Admiral, is it?" He asked. Even though it was clear his words were a statement rather than a question.

He continue before she could respond. "Why don't you say what you brought be here to say." He said bluntly.

Now Kuvira gave a personal reaction. Even she could not stop the blush that flared up in her face as she took in his words. She remained silent and still as a statue for a few moments before she glared in aggravation and replied.

"Take it off." She ordered.

Behind his mask, Kylo Ren choked (despite not having anything in his mouth to choke on) as her exact words hit him like a speeder on full throttle. Had he heard her correctly?!

He had known what kind of conversation they would likely be having but he had not expected anything like this to be said and definitely not so bluntly.

Behind his mask he gapped and finally managed to get his tongue untied. After a few deep breaths and multiple small coughs. Kylo Ren managed to get his thoughts in order. He saw that Kuvira was still staring at him expectantly, as if she expected him to obey her command without any question.

"(Cough)…um…what did you say?" Kylo Ren asked. It was the only question he could quite force out of his mouth at the moment.

The Grand Admiral looked at him askance. She did not roll her eyes or show any outward signs of irritation at the question. But Kylo Ren got the distinct impression that she was wondering if he was mocking her. Regardless she quickly elaborated.

"I refuse to have a conversation of….." She hesitated as if trying to find words that would be clear but also maintain her self-respect. "….of this nature, with a mask." She explained as she looked into the dark visage of Kylo Ren's iconic mask. "Remove it so we can discuss this like adults." She said, her words both a request and a command.

Kylo Ren instantly felt a sense of relief (and a tinge of something else) at the clarification.

While he would normal never remove his mask by anyone's command, except his master's. Kuvira was rabidly becoming an exception. Besides her point was a valid one. They could not discuss matters this personal through a mask. And Kylo Ren was not such a coward that he would hide his face from this.

Reaching up he activated the releases on his mask and heard the distinctive his as the components worked into their positons. Soon he pulled his mask free and set it on the table next to the sofa. Then he turned back to the woman who was still waiting expectantly with her arms folded in patience.

For a long while they simply looked at each other. Golden sith eyes locked onto emerald green eyes as they waited for this long overdue conversation to begin.

Kylo Ren waited and waited. But it soon became apparent that neither of them was ready or willing to initiate this talk. The Grand Admiral was simply standing there regarding him. She was standing at military rest but she remained as ridged and stiff as an iron rod. She was also working her lips as if she was struggling to decide what words to say.

The young Sith was confused at the situation and the silence that was rapidly becoming uncomfortable. The Grand Admiral had called for this talk. Did she not have any idea of what she wanted to say to him?

Confused. Kylo Ren reached out with the force. He did not directly invade Kuvira's mind. He respected and owed her too much to do that.

What he found was surprising to say the least.

He found apprehension, uncertainty and most astonishing of all. Fear.

She was riddled with fear and indecision in thus moment. He felt her need to begin the discussion and that she was mentally flailing to find some way to begin. But she seemed to be drawing a blank. Unable, rather than unwilling to speak about their relationship.

He was stunned.

None of these were emotions that he would ever have associated with Grand Admiral Kuvira. In fact if anyone had even suggested that she was capable of these emotions he would have force chocked the life out of them for their disrespect.

But as he searched her feelings and his own he soon realised what the problem was.

Neither of them knew how to proceed!

He had spent most of his childhood alone. With his parents as famous as they were and their criminal and political careers. He had never had much of an opportunity to make friends. Most of the children he had grown up with had been the children of fellow politicians on Hosnian Prime or children of his mother's sycophants.

They had never been a stable source of friendship with the constant shifting loyalties, alliances and logistics of the senate. One month they were there and the next they were gone. It was not long before he stopped bothering to know them to spare any pain of loss.

Once he grew up the problem became more developed and his parents had commented on how he always seemed to be alone. The friends he had made at school had quickly been revealed to be either ambitious social climbers hoping to use him. Or rebel worshipping idiots who wanted to be friends with the son of Han and Leia Solo rather than with Ben.

Once he had joined his Uncle Luke at his newly formed Jedi training temple. He had secretly hoped that this would be the start of his own life. That the reason that he had been unable to form tight bonds with others was due to his situation and his power in the force. But that now he would be able to meet people like him and who understood him. Away from the miasma that Hosnian Prime had become. And away from his parents suffocating shadow and their thinly concealed fear of him.

But he had quickly been disappointed. While on Hosnian Prime he was separated by his birth. Among the Jedi he was separated by his power and his views. Views which the old hypocrite had quickly made clear were not to be tolerated in a Jedi and a potential future Jedi Grandmaster.

Once again Ben Solo had failed to live up to his families' expectations, image and legacy. It was not long afterwards that Snoke had contacted him and he had thrown off their chains once and for all.

And in all this time there had been little chance or time for friends. Much less a girlfriend.

Kylo Ren was confronted with just how unexperienced or knowledgeable he was in matters like this. He had no idea how to talk to a woman about this. Or how these relationships typically started. He was essentially a confused boy facing his first romantic experience. And he had no idea what to do.

He almost found the situation laughable. He was Kylo Ren, heir to Darth Vader, apprentice to Supreme Leader Snoke, one of the most powerful beings in the galaxy. And he was defeated by simple interaction with a woman!

He also now understood why Kuvira was equally quiet.

She had been part of the First Order since she was four years old.

In that time she had been trained in weapons, tactics, mechanics, physical health, unarmed combat and many more military based skills.

As she got older and rose through the ranks she had been instructed in diplomacy, command, campaigning, languages, logistics and many others.

All this had led to her rise from a four year old orphan cadet to the Grand Admiral in just over twenty years.

And in that time she had devoted little to no thought whatsoever to romantic interests. It had not been for lack of offers. Since she had entered her teens Kuvira had been an attractive woman with a warrior's body that many would kill for.

Other troopers, officers and prospective allies had all shown interest in her. Sometimes through hints and flirting. Others through obvious displays of affection. Fraternisation between troopers was punished severely in the First Order. What soldiers did on leave was their own business but the Order did not tolerate open relationships between soldiers on duty.

But such restrictions had never fully stopped romantic involvement in any other army in history. And the First Order was no different.

But it had seemed to go unnoticed by the Grand Admiral. If she had even noticed the attention she had made no evidence of it. Some had claimed at first that she was simply too dense to see the obvious signs that were sent her way.

Later it had been suggested that she was simply uninterested in companionship of any kind. Others claimed that she was married and mother to the First Order. That she would allow no other distraction from her life's great cause to see the Order rise to become the dominant ruling galactic power.

As a result, Kuvira also now found herself in a situation that she had not planned for.

She had spent most of her life focused on military planning and combat situations. Her life was defined by her ability to plan, strategize and develop tactical responses for whatever the situation demanded. If she was caught off guard in battle (rare as it was) she was able to develop a response because she understood military facts.

But now for possibly the first time in years. Kuvira had been thrown completely off balance.

She was flailing for something to say. But she had no knowledge, experience or natural ability to draw on. When she had demanded to speak with Kylo Ren. She had done it, knowing it had to be done before it compromised their ability to work together effectively. And because she expected that she would be able to analyse this situation and find a solution as she had all other aspects of her life.

But now she found that she was floundering with no idea how to proceed. It was an incredibly unfamiliar and uncomfortable situation that she found herself in. She could count the times she had been this stressed and lost on the fingers of one hand.

All this left Kylo Ren amazed and adrift.

They had come together to discuss their relationship. And he did not know how. Nor did she. Neither of them knew!

They had spent their entire lives training for their respective destinies. But they had both become so focused that it had never even occurred to them. That they might need to know how to begin a romantic relationship!

So two of the three most powerful individuals in the First Order found themselves simply looking at each other like confused children!

Kylo Ren searched his mind and the force for inspiration of what to do in the situation. He would not allow a moment this important to him to be destroyed so utterly by this embarrassing display.

It was then that it hit him.

They were standing here like idiots trying to puzzle out their feelings and lusts for each other and to express them in words. But neither of them had ever learned how to talk about such things to a romantic partner.

Fighting, Conquest, Reacting, Dominance.

Those things they knew. That was what they both understood! That was a course of action they could follow on equal footing.

"Through Passion I gain Strength." He whispered quietly.

Kuvira's fumbling expression gave way to confusion as she raised an eyebrow at his words and waited for him to elaborate.

She was taken completely off guard however, when Kylo Ren moved forward in two steps and captured her lips with his own as he closed his golden eyes.

Kuvira's own eyes widened in surprise as she felt his mouth on hers and his arms captured her face on either side. She stared forward for a moment. Her eyes so wide they almost bugled while staring straight ahead at nothing as she stood in poker stiff shock like an animal in the speeder headlights.

For along moment she simply stood there like a statue as her mouth was assaulted by the dark lord. The last time they had done this they had just come from the heat of battle and near death. It was simple instinct that had driven her. Now she was focused with her analytical mind. Right now she was not sure if she should respond or pull out her blaster and shoot him for his audacity!

His tongue then connected with her teeth and demanded entry. Still in her shocked state, she gave way and soon found her tongue in a virtual wrestling match with Kylo Ren.

It was this that brought Kuvira back to herself. She now found something familiar she could latch onto. This she could understand. Kylo Ren had taken the initiative, and he had gain the advantage in this contest between them. She was on the defensive and must respond with her own actions, least she be overwhelmed.

Kuvira raised her arms and locked her hands on the sides of Ren's face just as he had placed his own. She took it a step further and proceeded to run her hands into his hair and intertwine her fingers in his impossibly fine black locks.

At the same time she responded to Kylo and began kissing him back with a ferocity that momentarily stunned him.

Sensing her opening Kuvira pivoted on her heels, dragging the dark lord with her. She then aggressively strode forward (never once breaking the kiss) and continued until she rammed Kylo Ren against the wall of her chambers. Thankfully unlike her chambers on the Reclaimer. Her room on the Supremacy was unadorned and the walls were clear of any decorations that might get in the way.

With his back to the wall (figuratively and literally) Kylo Ren was not to be outdone. Removing his hands from Kuvira's face he wrapped one arm around her back pulling her even closer to him while he deepened the kiss that had become a virtual wrestling match of passion between them.

At the same time he moved his other arm around her until his gloved hand came to rest directly on her arse. He quickly got frustrated that her black greatcoat prevented him from getting a firm grip. With his passion boiling and the dark side burning in him. He threw the fabric aside and clamped his hand on Kuvira's firm buttcheek and squeezed.

Kuvira jolted at the sudden and very unfamiliar physical contact. For a moment she was too stunned to react. Only a day ago, if anyone had touched her in such a way. She would have beaten them to within an inch of their life, and then thrown them in a Sarlacc pit.

Kylo Ren sensed her hesitation and immediately took advantage as he used his new grip on her backside to puller her closer and go on the full offensive in the war of tongues that was raging between them.

Feeling her defences falling, Kuvira resorted to desperate measures to regain her advantage. She pulled Kylo Ren away from the wall and swung him around. As she did so she hooked her leg behind his foot and threw him off balance.

Before the dark lord could regain his footing. Kuvira stepped close, placed both her hands on his toned torso and shoved him to the floor.

The Sith apprentice let out a surprised 'oof' as his body hit the floor. But Kuvira gave him no time to recover as she leapt on top of his prone body. Using her hands, she pinned his writs to the floor above is head as she straddled him to prevent him moving his hips. Her legs were tactically placed to prevent him from using his own legs to dislodge her.

For a moment the two of them simply stared at each other from their new position.

Then Kuvira moved to cement her victory as she leaned down and once again locked lips with Ren as she forced her tongue past his teeth and almost down his throat.

All the while she made a valiant effort to ignore the feeling of the fully hard piece of anatomy in Ren's groin that was poking her in a very distinct area of her own body.

But Kylo Ren was not prepared to lose this strange war just yet. Moving quickly he slid his hands out of her grip and placed them squarely on her chest as he began to massage her breasts. Just when she thought that was all he was doing. She felt a jolt of power and intense pleasure as Kylo Ren displayed his new power in Force lightning.

Small but powerful jolts of lightning were being channelled through his hands directly into her tits as he continued to fondle them. The sensation forced Kuvira to arch her back as she stared at the ceiling with wide eyes. Her teeth barely managing to slam down on her own tongue to prevent her from crying out loud.

She would not grant Kylo Ren victory so easily. Nor would she allow her cries of passion to he heard by her guards outside. Secure room or not she would not have her conduct and lapse of judgment known to anyone! Least of all her two Praetorian guards stationed outside.

She was driven to the edge of her emotional control but she was not sure what else to do. She was captivated in Kylo Ren's erotic attack and she had no way to counter his efforts. She was on the defensive and she knew that she did not have the strength left to resist his onslaught.

If this carried on much longer. She would be forced to admit defeat and to surrender in this war of dignity. That was something she could not accept. While Kuvira had long ago accepted that no General, Admiral, Warlord or Warrior goes through life undefeated. She had resolved to never surrender when she still had a weapon at her disposal.

She remembered a quote from an ancient warlord. One of her favourites in all her studies in the art of war. 'Opportunities multiply as they are seized!'

Filled with an emotion she could not describe. Passion, anger, defiance, stubbornness; perhaps all of them at once?!

Kuvira lunged forward. Using the arch of her spine to spring herself towards Kylo Ren with sudden and unexpected speed.

The young sith lord had clearly not been expecting such an attack. He must have thought that Kuvira was not capable of retaliation. That thought only drove Kuvira as she drove towards her target.

As she brought her torso down on Kylo Ren's she ripped aside the fabric of the dark lords robes and bit him in his neck.

The flash of pain, and sensual pleasure that Kylo Ren experienced as he felt Kuvira's teeth pierce his skin as she drew blood like a ravenous she-wolf, was like nothing he had expected or experienced in the past. The combination of shock, pain, anger, pleasure and lust shot through his system and overloaded his synaptic system.

Unable to control it. The carefully controlled force lightning he had been channelling from his hands. Was instantly stopped as the energy was changed from a smooth channel into an internal detonation. Unable to control his passions, the power of the dark side flooded into his corporal body faster than he could control it.

He had no way to control the flood of power as he felt Kuvira's body pressed atop his and with her teeth knawing at his neck in a very pleasant way.

The best he could do was disperse it. And to try to keep the effect as contained as possible.

The force erupted from his body in a powerful (but thankfully non-lethal) force repulse. The blast of power that sent a shockwave of dark energy across the room from within his corporal body. It was only by his own will and immense power that the repulse did not reduce all the walls and furniture in the room to debris. And the two people in the room to organic ash!

But he was not able to contain the effects fully.

Kuvira was thrown from his body where she had been straddled and was flung across the room. Meanwhile he was also hurled from the floor and tossed towards the opposing wall.

Kuvira and Ren slammed into the walls of the suite at almost the same interval in time. Both the Grand Admiral and the Dark Lord coming to rest in a crumpled black heap of clothing on the ground as they faced the full effects of the blast of involuntary force power.

They were both too shaken to move for a while. They were both struggling to throw off the residual effects of the blast. While and the same time trying to clear their heads of the raging storm of emotions and sensations that had threatened to overwhelm them.

For a few seconds, both of them just lay there as they collected their wits and allowed their hormones to settle down. Then they (almost simultaneously) sat up as they rested their battered bodies against the mercifully cold metal walls that they had been hurled into. A foolish person in the room might have commented that their bodies were so flushed that steam should have appeared when they touched the cold walls. Thankfully no one was present to make such a comment. Or to suffer the gruesome death that both man and woman would have visited on them for such a joke at their expense.

Kuvira shook her head slightly as she tried to get a grip on herself. She was finding it very hard to concentrate in this moment. Her mind, which was normally so logical and analytical was suddenly awash. It was as if a fog had been laid over her mind, preventing her from thinking clearly.

She did not like that feeling.

With renewed effort she forcibly began to rip the veil of emotion haze out of her mind as she allowed her blood to cool and her emotions to stop roiling. Slowly, but steadily she found that the primal side of herself was fading back into her subconscious and she was once again able to think in her typical manner.

As she did so, she realised that she was currently slumped against the wall with her hair a dishevelled mess and her uniform greatly ruffled and askew.

Her face once again burned red. But this time with shame and self-recrimination. She bolted to her feet and spun around to face the wall as she quickly began to set her uniform to rights.

Her shirt needed to be tucked back in and her belt reset as it had come loose during the 'struggle'. Her collar had also come loose as well as a few of the fastenings on her shirt. Hands moving at the speed of thought she quickly managed to re-dress herself.

She then turned her attention to her hair and face. She quickly combed back her hair from her face where it had fallen into several hanging strands that had been knocked loose from her braid. Then she tied it all back into her typical braid and re-fastened it in her usual braid in the back.

She could do nothing about her face or make up. (Kuvira was not an avid user of cosmetics. She was not one to go about looking like a painted cantina dancer. But she was also reluctant for her soldiers and officers see her in an unkempt state. As much as she wished it was otherwise. She knew appearances were important for someone in her position of authority. Therefore she used a daily routine of moderate lip-gloss and mascara).

But it was now smeared and distorted in ways that could not help but be noticed. She quickly wiped away what she could with her gloved hands. But the rest would need to be washed off and re-applied properly before she left the suite and met with others on the ship.

With her appearance repaired to the full extent that she could manage at the moment. She turned back around to face Kylo Ren.

Ren was also standing on his feet. His robes reset and his hair once again in place down to his shoulders. Beyond that he had not had to recover too much. Though the love bite that Kuvira had given him on his neck would need to be carefully concealed until it healed.

Once again they found themselves staring at each other in silence across the room. It was almost as if the…..event…..had not even taken place.

Except that it definitely had occurred. Though personally Kuvira was glad that it had ended when it had.

Not that she had not enjoyed herself. She had definitely enjoyed it. More so then she would have thought possible. But in that moment she had lost herself in the emotional whirlwind that it had become, and had lost control of herself.

She was not certain she could have trusted herself to maintain her composure and dignity if that moment had gone any further.

Kuvira had never once in her entire life considered herself as the kind of woman that was….easy. In fact what had just occurred was the furthest she had ever gone with a man. If anyone had ever suggested that she was that kind of woman they would have been demoted to sewage duty for the next year.

Yet in that moment she had seemed to lose all reason and her dishevelled clothes seemed to act as evidence towards her own latent promiscuity. That forced her to ask the difficult question of what would have happened if Kylo Ren had not sent out that force blast? Would she have had the presence of mind to pull back at a certain point? Or would she had allowed herself to be led into all manner of depravity?

Would all that she had worked for, all that she was have been swept aside by an action as simple as an unexpected kiss? It had happened once before in the cockpit of her TIE fighter in the hanger of the Reclaimer. Who could say that it would not have happened again?

For a moment and possibly the first time in her life. Kuvira was deeply shaken.

The foundations of her life were seeming to be crumpling beneath her feet.

Was she truly that weak-willed?!

Was her logical mind merely a cover for the much stronger primal nature beneath it?!

Was the First Order and its military not in the hands of a competent and deserving Grand Admiral. But instead in the feeble grasp of an emotionally desperate child?!

Kuvira might have imagined it. In fact she must have imagined it. But she could have sworn her eyes felt as if they were growing glassy.

But then she threw the thoughts away as if they had been painful to the touch. She would not allow herself to do this! She would not allow this simple if complicated moment she destroy all that she was. All that she had ever aspired to be!

If she allowed that to happen then she truly was as weak and pathetic as she had briefly feared she was. Whatever feelings and issues both for Kylo Ren and herself had been awoken this day. She would not allow them to shake her composure. She would maintain her pride and dignity and would resolve them each in her own time on her own terms.

Until then there was nothing to be done but to march forward into the unknown boldly. It was not only expected of her it was demanded!

Kuvira straightened as her spine was snapped to attention like an iron rod. She was Grand Admiral Kuvira and she had had enough of wallowing in her emotional distress like a thirteen year old child.

Whether or not Kuvira and Ren would have gone further without the interruption was irrelevant. She would not allow what if's to disturb her and she would not allow them to make her second guess herself or her identity.

She knew who she was and what she valued. And that was enough for now. The rest could wait.

She cleared her throat as she set her once again focused gaze on Kylo Ren who had not moved from his own position and was in fact watching Kuvira very intently. "I confess, Lord Ren. I found that to be an enjoyable experience." She said with all the emotion of someone commenting that the weather was a little chilly.

If Kylo Ren was surprised by her sudden change in demeanour. He made now sign of it. "I agree Grand Admiral. I confess that I have been considering this, moment for some time." He admitted to Kuvira as she raised an eyebrow in interest at his confession. "But I am unsure where we go from here. What did this mean to you?" He asked pointedly, wanting to get this matter resolved one way or another.

Kuvira paused for a moment. Clearly she was choosing her words with care before she responded. "I admit that I also had some thoughts about us for some time. But I must confess I am very inexperienced in matters…..like this." She hesitated but only for a moment. "If I really must say it out loud. I do like you very much Lord Ren. And while I have no experience to draw on. I can see some potential in a deeper relationship between the two of us." She admitted. Her words as composed as ever even as her face continued to burn red.

Kylo Ren nodded, he was aware that his own heart rate was racing and he was wishing he had his mask on in that moment. "I feel the same way, Grand Admiral. I am not sure how to proceed and we both have our duties. But I have grown fond of you. And I am interested in taking this relationship further." He said with his voice composed in contrast to his emotional state.

Kuvira started walking towards him and after a few steps he also moved toward her. They met in the centre of the room. Almost in the same place that they had started their romantic activities.

They stared at each other for a while as their eyes locked. It was strange. They had seen each other uncountable times and lately they had been eye locking more often as their feelings evolved. But somehow this moment seemed to be the first time they truly saw each other.

After a while of silent soul searching. Kuvira gestured to the door to her chambers. "Out there we are the Grand Admiral and the Dark Lord. We have our duties and whatever this is between us. It will remain strictly between us. It will not affect our duties and our responsibilities to the Supreme Leader and the First Order." Kuvira stated bluntly. Making it clear that her words were a statement of fact and not a suggestion.

Then she paused, and her words become noticeably more tender. "In here and in other places, when we are alone." She hesitated before she looked directly at him. "When we are alone, we can be Kylo Ren and Kuvira. We can see each other and be…fond of each other." She finished slightly lamely as her composure cracked slightly at what she was suggesting.

Kylo Ren knew how difficult this was for her. It was just as difficult for him as well. But he was determined to follow through on this. He reached out and gently cupped his gloved hand against the side of her face in a gesture that could not be taken as anything other than affectionate. "I would like that a lot, Kuvira." He said gently with emphasise on the last word as he used her actual name.

Kuvira stiffened under his touch and again as she heard him say her name in that tone.

Her right hand rose to her head, before she stopped the motion and her hand fell back to her waist. She had been about to offer her standard salute. The gesture that she had always used with him when their conversation ended. But then she thought better of it as even she realised that it was not appropriate for this discussion.

Her hand then rose again as she directed towards Ren, before it once again fell back to her waist. That time she had been about to offer a handshake as a way of farewell. But she realised that this too was not a sufficient gesture to end this talk on.

Finally she heaved a sigh of frustration and quickly leaned in to him. Before Kylo Ren could react she had placed a quick but noticeably tender kiss on his cheek before she pulled away and quickly made her way towards the bathroom.

Her pace was just above walking as it was clear she had explored her emotional side enough for one day. Before she reached the bathroom she turned back to face him. "I must make myself presentable for the war meeting later today, Lord Re…..Kylo." She finished, catching herself from using his formal title and changing to his actual name. Ren liked how it sounded on her tongue. "I will see you later at the meeting." She said quickly.

With that she entered the bathroom and the door closed and locked behind her.

Kylo Ren stared at the door for a moment. Then he picked up his mask, placed it back on his head and exited the room. The two Praetorian guards not reacting as he left.

It was good that he wore his mask. Otherwise people would have wondered by he was smiling. Or why his golden eyes where virtually glowing with the power and passion of the dark side.

 **Authors Note**

 **I can say without a doubt that has been the hardest chapter to write yet. I have never written one of these scenes before. And it was really hard to have these two strong and stoic characters let their armour down in a way that felt real. All the while delving into their deeper emotions while they were in a vulnerable moment.**

 **But it is finally done. I hope you enjoyed it.**

 **As always Reviews and feedback is appreciated.**


	29. Chapter 29 - Interlude: Part 1

**Sylphi: Thank you for the review as always. I am glad you enjoyed it so much.**

 **Auguste the Clown: Thanks for your review. I also enjoyed our discussion on the Private Message system. I am glad you liked how I wrote the last chapter while trying to keep to who Kuvira and Kylo Ren are while making them more human. I hope you enjoy this chapter as well.**

 **Alice: Thanks for your review. Sorry to hear you were not feeling good last month. But I am glad to hear the chapter cheered you up. I hope this one does as well.**

 **WitchofDuva: Thank you for your review. I am glad you enjoyed the power dynamic and the refusal of either one of them to submit to the other. I was hoping it would flesh them out while keeping their power and personal respect intact.**

 **TishaLiz: Haha I suppose that is the best way to describe it. As you say it is going to be complicated to keep their relationship going while maintaining their power dynamic. But I am glad with how the chapter turned out. I was hoping to have them display vulnerability while maintaining their aura of power. It was complicated. I am considering a Leia POV in these Interlude chapters. We could get a glance at the interrogations so I hope you will enjoy that.**

 **Guest: Thanks for your review. I am honestly not sure how I am going to incorporate Rise of Skywalker into this fanfic. It has thrown a few of my plans into question. But I can say that Kuvira is not going to be happy about Palpatines return.**

 **.2019: That is what I was going for. I am glad you enjoyed it.**

 **C.E.W: Thanks for your review as always. Yeah they got round to it eventually. It just took them some time to figure it out. As established they are not experienced in these matters. I have been considering how to incorporate First Order Allegiant General Enric Pryde. To be truthful Rise of Skywalker has thrown a lot of my ideas out the window. Still I am working on the overall plan. Whether this will result in a First Order civil war, a coup'd'tat or something else is still being decided. Palpatine's power will definite demand Kuvira's attention. But the deeper reasons for her distaste for the Force will be revealed in future chapters.**

 **Loken 16:** **Hi. Thank you very much for your time to write this message. I really appreciate all the support you have shown for my story. I have read your message and I like the idea's. I have thought about them before and have been trying to put together the basic plan for the story to take. I also liked your suggestion of Palpatine ordering Snoke to kill Kuvira for the reasons you listed. It works because Palpatine is so paranoid and megalomaniac that he would never allow someone to be even a potential threat to his rule. Which Kuvira definitely is with her distaste for him.**

 **It also helps because Snoke is going to become a problem later and without the confrontation with Rey in the throne room. I have been struggling with what to do about him. Especially since currently Kylo and Kuvira have no real reason to move against him. Kylo still has more to learn from his master and Kuvira will not risk civil war in play for the throne.**

 **My only concern with this plan is the following question: "Does Snoke know he is working for Palpatine?"By that I mean does Snoke actively serve and bow before Palpatine? Or does he think he is serving his own ambitions and is being played as a unknowing tool" If it is the former then your suggestion can work easily. But if it is the latter (as I suspect it is) then it becomes more complicated.**

 **Truth's Hierarch: Thanks for your review as always. I am considering how their relationship will develop. But it will be different from Vader and Padme. For one thing Padme and Kuvira are very different women. I have always been curious how Vader and Padme's relationship would have gone if she was an imperialist and not a fanatical republic idealist. That being said it will not be a lovey dovey romance as that is just not them. If someone brought Kuvira flowers she would likely have him beaten for deserting his post.**

 **That being said the Rise of Skywalker and the way that movie affected Kylo Ren have complicated things somewhat. I am still piecing my plan together. In the meantime I hope you enjoy this interlude chapter.**

 **Hayatin: Thank you for your review. I am always glad to read how that people are enjoying the story and Kuvira's development as a character. OC's are always a problem as they are usually under developed so that you don't care about them. Or they are so overpowered that it makes the story redundant. While maintaining Kuvira's Thrawn like genius and skills as a warrior I am trying to make it clear that she is a person with thoughts and feelings. It is the strong proud characters with hidden depths that I have always found the most fascinating.**

 **I am also glad you like how the story is not black and white. That is one of the main reasons I started this story. It has always annoyed me how one sided the star wars universe is. It is all Republic/Rebels/Jedi = Good - Empire/ Imperials/Sith = Bad.**

 **Nothing is that simple much less a conflict spanning a galaxy and being waged across millions of years. While Disney has begun to make some efforts to give us a more realistic and balanced view of the Star Wars Universe it is still often presented as black and white. This story is my attempt to present the story from the other side. Or at least a much less biased side. To show that if you actually think about it the war is much more complicated then often presented and that the 'good' guys. May not be the guys you actually want in to win.**

 **Shade: Thanks for your review.**

 **Anakin Solo: Nope there will not be any Reylo in this story. I never liked that side of the trilogy beyond the uncertainty it gave Rey's allegiance.**

 **TeslaRivera: Thank you for your review. I am glad that you read and enjoyed my story despite your initial reservations. I admit the Romance tag can be a put off as there are thousands of stories that are heavily focused on that before anything else. I have since changed the tags as I feel that while Romance is now a part of this story it will not be the defining part. I hope you continue to enjoy the rest of the story.**

 **VioletCitizen: Thank you for your review. I am glad that you like the story and my OC so far. I agree that OC's are always a risk. They can be boring or simply overpowered. But if done right they can make some of the best stories. Anyway I hope you enjoy this chapter as well.**

 **Guest: Thank you for your review. I am glad you like the story so far.**

 **BlackWatcher1234: Thank you for your review. I hope this chapter answers your question.**

 **Chapter 29 – Interlude Part 1**

 **Crait – Resistance Base**

 **Admiral Holdo – POV**

"You mean you just left them there?!" Poe Dameron screamed out.

The sound of his yell echoing throughout the cavernous mine shaft that the tattered remnants of the Resistance were currently huddled. The noise also startled a number of the crystal animals (that C-3PO had ladled as Vulptex, despite no one asking) that were watching from the shadows and causing them to jump back in fright.

The rest of the Resistance survivors from this disastrous day winced as the noise and the accusation washed over them. Many of them avoiding the burning gaze of Poe's eyes while others looked down at the dirt floor and their feet.

But the woman who the accusation was directed at did not so much as flinch. Instead, Admiral Holdo stared straight back at Poe. Her icy expression a complete contrast to the red faced fury displayed on Poe's face.

Her apparent lack of reaction or remorse for her actions only seemed to infuriate Poe further as he clenched his hands into fists and his breathing became sharp and aggressive.

After the ambush in deep space and the fall of the Raddus. The surviving members of the Resistance had fled on the Ninka. As it had been the only ship to still be operational and capable of lightspeed after the battle at D'Qar. They had jumped into hyperspace just before the First Order had been able to destroy them with blasts from the Monolithic ship that had appeared before them.

After that they had made another jump and then a third. All the while thanking the Force that while the Raddus had been low on fuel, the Ninka had a sufficient supply.

After the third jump they had sat still in the black ether of deep space, and waited.

They knew that the First Order clearly had some means of tracking a ship through hyperspace. How they had done that they did not know. But they knew that at any moment a fleet of First Order star destroyers could appear and rain fire down on them.

They could only hope that they had been more focused on the Raddus and that they could not track them through multiple hyperspace jumps.

They had sat there in almost complete silence for what felt like hours. All talking was done in little more than a whisper, even among officers. It was as if the crew had been afraid that even the slightest noise would attract the First Order, like some horrific stalking predator.

The tension had been so think it was almost visible as it circulated between the individual members of the crew as they tried to occupy their time and their minds with their duties. But through it all, each and every one of them had been prepared for the alarms to blare out and for the sound of plasma fire to impact against their ship's hull.

That was assuming they even got a warning and were not just snuffed out in a ball of fire before they even knew what was happening.

Finally, Admiral Holdo had proclaimed that they had waited long enough. She then ordered that the coordinates for Crait be entered into the navi computer and for the crew to begin preparations to transfer their flag from the Ninka to a planetary base.

Upon their arrival on the abandoned salt encrusted mining world. The Resistance had quickly moved to set up within the old Rebel base. They had moved the Ninka itself to the surface in a nearby ravine. This ravine would conceal it from observation and allowed access to the base through the system of tunnels that extended from the main base cavern.

They had just set up the communications network when a call had come through on the Resistance's private secure frequency.

It had been Poe and his remaining squadron pilots. They had apparently jumped to the Mek-Sha system and had been waiting near the asteroid belt for the promised communication to direct them to the new base.

But when the communication had not come. He had tried to raise the Raddus himself. When that failed he had resorted to sending out coded messages on the Resistance long range communication channel. He had been on the verge of despairing when he had final received the answer from Crait.

Poe had initially been overjoyed to receive a response to his hails and had immediately ordered his pilots to jump to lightspeed and head directly for Crait. They had landed their fighters within the derelict hanger within the base. After the ground teams had removed some crumpling old speeder vehicles from the area.

That had all been about half an hour ago. But it had not taken long for Poe to ask what had happened and where Leia and the rest of the leadership was.

The story had then been revealed. The last minute escape from D'Qar. The dire shape the Raddus was left in after the jump. The ambush by the First Order fleet. And the final order from General Organa to leave them behind and escape.

No one had expected Commander Dameron to react well to the news. But they were surprised when it became apparent that his anger was not being directed against the First Order. But against the Ninka survivor's.

"Leia needed your help. They all needed your help and you just decided to save yourselves?!" He yelled as the other members of his fighter squadron stood behind him. They were not yelling along with him. But they were all looking at the Ninka crew with scorn and in some cases disgust.

Admiral Holdo continued to stare right back as Poe was forced into silence to collect another breath after shouting so hard. "General Organa herself ordered us to leave the battlefield. The Raddus was crippled and there was no time to evacuate anyone else. She knew that there was nothing she could so except order us to save the Resistance to fight another day." Holdo replied to Poe.

Her tone was not angry despite Poe's accusations. But her lips displayed a tightness that implied she was holding in her temper with effort.

Poe however did not seem to notice in his anger fuelled state. Or maybe he simply did not care.

"Then you should have made time. You should have made a distraction or a surprise assault to keep the First Order occupied while the Raddus and Leia got to the escape shuttles!" He shouted.

Holdo's expression did not change but her tone took on a clear note of sarcasm. "You think we should have taken the Ninka into battle against a full First Order fleet and the Supremacy, alone?" She said with clear condescension. "I understand you have a taste for grandiose attacks and defiant gestures, Commander. But that is not a strategy, it is suicide."

She gestured to the assembled crew behind her. "They knew that. I knew it and Leia definitely knew it. She made the only choice she could. To save as many as possible. And we made the only choice we could. To obey her orders and live to fight another day." Holdo stated with utter surety.

"There is no point in fighting a battle you cannot win, Commander. It is not brave or heroic, it is just stupid. If we had done what you suggest we would be dead or captured along with Leia and the rest. And you and your pilots would be all that was left of the Resistance." Holdo said. Her tone had been dropping as she spoke as she allowed her mind to settle.

She clearly felt that the conversation was nearing its end and that Poe and his fellows would understand the situation once her logical words reached them and they allowed their grief and frustration to cool.

She was confident that once they accepted their situation as it was, (rather then what they wished it was) they would accept the outcome and begin to work alongside the rest to begin building up the Resistance.

But it seemed that Poe was not seeing things that way. "Yes, because this situation is so much better!" He said mockingly as he gestured to the crowd and around the cavern. "We are down to one ship and a dozen starfighters. The Resistance has less than two hundred people left; half of which are too injured for action. We are hiding in this hole in the ground with only ancient supplies and equipment. We have lost almost our entire leadership council. We have lost D'Qar, our allies are silent."

He stopped as he returned his gaze to Holdo. "And worst of all. The woman who had been leading us since the beginning. The woman who put this all together. Who kept us going in the darkest times, has been captured. Leia is probably being tortured right now, or maybe she is even dead!" He yelled as he lifted a murderous gaze at Holdo whose own expression was growing darker at each accusation.

"Princes Leia Organa may be dead. Because of you and your fucking cowardice!" He roared as his words echoed and reverberated around the chamber.

"No." Poe uttered. His voice no longer a shout but a much more malevolent whisper. "You're not a coward. You're a traitor!" He snarled with a long before which Holdo should have sunk into the earth.

On some level Poe knew he was being unreasonable. He knew that Holdo and the others had done all that they could do to save Leia and the Raddus. He knew that if they had stayed to fight they would have been obliterated and the Resistance would have been all but dead. He knew that they had done the right thing.

He knew all these things.

But in this moment a larger part of him didn't care. That larger part of him was being driven by anger, frustration, grief and despair and desperately needed some close at hand to blame. Right now that side of him kept whispering that they had an opportunity to save Leia, no matter how small the chance was. Or to at least go down fighting. To die a valiant death, standing defiant in the face of evil.

But instead they had chosen to run away. And he found that he could not force himself to care about their reasons or logic. All that mattered was that they had fled. That they had abandoned Leia!

That they had betrayed her!

Betrayed him!

Betrayed the Resistance!

Betrayed the galaxy!

It was these thoughts that were being screamed into Poe's head right now. Almost as if a malevolent demon was whispering them directly into his ear. And in turn it was these thoughts that he had screamed out into the faces of his fellow Resistance pilots.

The chamber was silent as the words died away. Even Poe looked stunned. As if he had acted without thinking.

For a moment Poe's pilots were surprised as well. But as his words sunk in they too began to level accusing and condemning stares at Holdo and the crew of the Ninka. One or two of them even fingered the blasters as if they were ready for this to devolve into a fire fight.

Meanwhile the Ninka crew had been listening as well. They had heard Holdo's arguments about how there was nothing they could have done. And while some of them might harbour doubts. They heard the logic of her argument and were all desperate to believe that they had done all they could.

Because of that their shame and self-recrimination had begun to leave them. And as Poe's insults and accusations built up. Their shame had quickly been replaced with anger and indignation. Now they were staring aggressively back at Poe and his pilots and some of them were hefting weapons or simple tools in their hands. As if testing the weight in case they were called to swing it at something or someone.

It was a strange sight. What only half an hour ago had been a joyous reunion of comrades, had devolved to hostile setting in which the Resistance seemed to be splitting in two.

Holdo's expression had lost its icy calm and was now openly looking at Poe in way that could only be called contemptuous.

"I will remind you Commander Dameron that until the situation changes I am acting leader for the Resistance and a good and loyal soldier. (She said with clear emphasis on those words). Is expected to follow orders and stand by his comrades. Not shout out blame and defeatist accusations when things go wrong." She said in a jagged tone to match the crimson crystals in the cave around them.

"As of this moment you may consider yourself demoted." She said. "You will now serve simply as squadron leader. The rank of Wing Commander will be given to someone more deserving and clearly more loyal to his fellow Resistance members." She stated in a tone that brooked no argument.

Poe took a step towards her that could only be called threatening. "You do not have the right to issue that order." He hissed venomously.

Holdo simply stared back. "I certainly do. But this order does not come from me. It comes from General Organa. It was among the final orders she transmitted to the Ninka before the First Order attacked. You have been relieved of you rank due to your recklessness and your blatant insubordination." She paused as if debating whether to continue her condemnation.

Then she did.

"In fact if anyone here is in danger of being called a traitor Squadron Leader. It is you!" She proclaimed acidly.

Poe reacted as if he had been slapped across the face. His jaw dropped and his eyes went wide. He looked as though he could hardly credit his ears.

"Me?! Wha….What did I do?!" He asked. His tone half indignant, half genuinely surprised.

"You disobeyed a direct order from both General Organa and Admiral Ackbar." Holdo bit out bluntly. "They ordered you to pull back your fighters and bombers to defend the Raddus and the fleet from the First Order TIE's. They needed your fighters to protect the engines and the hyper drives so that we could escape from D'Qar."

"Instead, you chose to ignore the order and you continued your attack on the First Order command ship. In doing so you left the Raddus and the rest of the fleet critically under defended and you led your attack force into a suicidal charge against a well prepared and ready enemy. Because of this act of treason. The Resistance bombers were cut to pieces and all the members of their crews died a needless death in an attack that never needed to happen. Those people died because of you!" Holdo said with clear anger in her voice.

Poe took a step back as if he had been struck. But Holdo was not finished.

"It was also because of you that the fleet was not able to jump out of the system in time. Leia held the fleet in orbit while she waited for your squadron to come to their senses and make it back to the hangers. This allowed the First Order dreadnaught enough time to charge their cannons and fire at the fleet. The Vigil and the Anodyne were completely destroyed because of the delay you caused. And it was this same attack that led to the Raddus being crippled beyond any hope of repair!" Holdo continued with her voice rising along with her temper.

"Finally it was because of you that the First Order was able to capture the Raddus with virtually no effort. And because of your actions that Leia and most of the leadership council was captured." Holdo said with her eyes boring into Poe like a laser beam.

"You can accuse us of abandoning Leia if you must Dameron. But it will not change the fact that you practically delivered her to them on a silver platter." She said as she looked into Poe's stricken face. "And I think you know that as well. Is that why you are so desperate to blame us for what happened to Leia. Are you desperately searching for some fault in others so that your mistakes will be mitigated? That your actions did not cause all this pain and loss?" She asked sardonically.

"Well I am sorry Squadron Leader but you can't undo what has happened. It is too little, too late." She said with finality. "Now I suggest you get your pilots to the hanger to begin the after flight maintenance checks." Holdo said as she stood facing Poe and his assembled pilots.

Silence followed her condemnations. The cavern was free from all sounds except the occasional tinkling of the Vulptix's crystal fur as they watched from the shadows.

Poe simply stood there for a moment. His face ashen as his mouth opened and closed slowly as if he was trying to speak but found himself unable to. Finally he slowly turned and walked back towards the hanger. His movements were slow and stiff as if he was running on automatic pilot.

As he had it half way to the cavern exit he turned back to face Holdo and the assembled Ninka crew. He gave a small appealing gesture and made what seemed to be another attempt at talking. Was he trying to offer an apology? Or was he trying to offer some defence for his actions?

Whatever it was he seemed unable to offer it. After another second he simply turned and walked away. His pilots following him. Some looking back with commiserating faces, others with cautious glances. Until they were out of sight.

With them gone. Holdo let out a small breath she didn't realise she was holding as the Ninka crew dispersed back to their tasks.

Holdo moved through the throng and made her way to the cavern that had been set up as the command centre for the new Resistance base. No one else appeared to be in the room at the time. So Holdo took the opportunity to place her hands on the tactical display table in the centre of the room and let out a long sigh of pent up emotion.

"Well that was stupid." She chided herself in a whisper.

"Not at all." A voice answered. Holdo turned around and saw that Captain Idrosen Gawat had followed her into the command room. Gawat was an old veteran in his seventies. A member of the Rebel Alliance and a long-time colleague of her and Leia. He had been captain of the Ninka before Holdo took it as her own flagship. This had allowed them a lot of time to work together.

She had always respected him for his wisdom borne of experience. She could definatly use it now.

"Poe has a certain romantic view of the Galaxy, the Resistance and of himself." Gawat continued. "He could use a dose of cold water."

Holdo did not deny it. But she felt she could have handled the situation better. "Still I could have picked a better time and setting then in front of the entire base." She said.

Gawat stepped forward. "If he is going to be the leader that Leia believed he could be. If he is going to become the leader we all need him to be. Then the pain of your words will make him more likely to become that leader, not less." He said with calm surety.

Holdo could only hope that he was right. The Resistance needed strong and wise leadership now more than ever.

 **Ahch-To – The Unknown Regions**

 **Rey – POV**

Rey watched as Jedi Master Luke Skywalker sat on a stone bench outside the modest hut that he had tried to shut himself away in.

(Until Chewbacca had smashed the door down and Han had dragged his old friend out of the hut by the front of his robes.)

Now the Jedi sat before them. He had not been overjoyed to see his old friends. Nor had he been angered by the rough breaking and entering of his house. He simply seemed sad. And tired. So completely tired. Now he simple sat there with his head bowed and his eyes on the floor.

Han stood in front of him as he leaned on the crumpling stone wall behind him while Chewbacca remained positioned in front of the shattered door to the hut. Just in case the Jedi decided to try to make his way back into it she supposed.

She hovered nearby as she listened to Han and Chewie bring Luke up to speed with what had been happening in the galaxy since his self-imposed exile.

Below them the surf and the waves crashed against the rocky shores of the island that sat adrift in the seemingly endless grey seas of the planet. For someone like her, who had grown up on a desert world like Jakku, the sight of so much water was a difficult thing to process.

She was reluctant to interrupt these old friends catch up after all this time. But as the conversation continued. She felt she had to say what they had all been dancing around. It could not be put off any longer.

"There is no light left in Kylo Ren. He has become so powerful in the dark side. He nearly killed us all on Starkiller base. And he is only getting stronger." She said.

Saying that name invoked a reaction with all three of them. Chewie uttered a low growl of hatred as he gently fingered the black patch that had been place cover his ruined eye. She supposed they should be thankful Kuvira had such good aim. The blade had it its target directly and so the rest of his face had been mostly spared from slashing injury.

Han flinched as the name was spoken. The reminder of the encounter with his son was clearly still painful. But his eyes also took on a steely look and his jaw was set firm as he remembered his conviction. His son Ben had died long ago. Killed by Snoke and the curse Darth Vader placed in his blood. Kylo Ren was just the monster that stepped into the hollow shell that was left behind. A monster that he would gladly end if given the chance.

The name seemed to pierce Luke as he sat slumped beside Chewie. He seemed so much older in that moment then he had when Rey had first seen him. He seemed broken too. Drained of whatever power he had once possessed.

But the galaxy could not afford to wait for Luke Skywalker to work through whatever tragedy had sent him into this downward spiral. They had to make him understand that everything he and everyone else he loved had every fought for was balancing on a knife edge. So close to being destroyed forever.

They had been sent to find him. But somehow they still seemed to be searching for him. Despite the fact that he was sitting right in front of them.

"Leia showed me estimates of the First Order's military strength. It is massive!" She proclaimed. "And now that the Republic has been destroyed. There is nothing to stop them. They will control all the major systems within weeks. We received confirmation before we arrived that Coreilla and Chandrila have surrendered to First Order oversight. Grand Admiral Kuvira's fleet was has been reported to be moving towards Coruscant." She said, her voice taking on the tone of pleading.

"They will destroy the Resistance, Finn, Leia, BB-8, everyone I care about. We need the Jedi Order back. We need Luke Skywalker."

Han stepped up beside her. "She's right kid." Han said, using the old nickname. Despite the fact that Luke was definitely not a kid anymore. "I haven't been in the fight long but I know how it will go. I have been across the galaxy and kept my ears open to what people are saying. The galaxy is not interested in fighting the First Order. They will either surrender because of the fear of what happened to Hosnian Prime. Or because they just don't care enough to bother resisting." Han said with a sad shake of his head.

"They just see it as the latest in a long line of power transitions from Republic to Empire and back again. They have become numb to it and most simply don't care anymore." Han pressed. "The First Order will have taken full control soon. We have heard rumours from Resistance agents that some of the New Republic navy commanders were away from Hosnian Prime when it happened. They have been trying to consolidate their forces into a joint fleet. But it has become nearly impossible to coordinate it with them spread across the galaxy and the chain of command decimated. There have also been problems with some of the Navy wanting to return to worlds that have surrendered. It could tear the remaining Republic forces apart."

"Even if they do manage to combine their forces. It will still not be nearly enough to challenge the entire First Order. At best it might but up a decent fight against one of their fleets." He said as he continued to stare at Luke expectantly.

"I never thought I would say this. But we need you and your hockey religion back. Because right now. All the blasters on Balmorra are not going be able to save us from the First Order." He finished as he allowed a hint of humour to creep into his voice.

Rey took that opportunity to step in and add her two credits. "He's right. We need the Jedi Order back. We need you." She said earnestly.

Luke looked up at them after a moment. But when he did, there was no fire of conviction in his eyes. No expression of determination. In fact it was as if he had not heard their words at all. Eventually he turned back to face Han. "You don't need me Han. You never have." He muttered.

Rey's expression became one of disbelieve. Maybe he really hadn't heard them. It seemed to be the only logical explanation for his apathy.

That or maybe he had gone insane in this isolation.

But Han was less understanding.

"Have you got sand in your ears farm boy?!" Han demanded, his temper starting to fray at Luke apparent indolence. "The First Order has wiped out the New Republic. The Republic you, me and Leia fought so long and hard to build. They are chasing the Resistance across the galaxy and are on the verge of destroying them! Hell, they might have already done it. We haven't heard anything from them since we left D'Qar." He yelled as he moved to put his face directly in front of Luke's.

"Now we need you to get on your feet. Pick up the lightsaber you threw off a cliff! And come back with us to the Resistance." He ground out as he looked at his friends impassive face.

"And do what?" Luke asked bluntly.

Han stood up and backed away. He looked as if Luke was speaking a different language to him. Rey gasped as soon as she heard that.

Luke glared at them harshly. "What did you think was going to happen? That I would pick up my laser sword and face down the entire First Order? You say you need the Jedi Order back. A few of them in robes with lightsabers. How much of a difference do you think they would actually make?" He demanded.

Rey was starting to grow angry now. This was not the time for a philosophical or tactical debate. But Luke was not finished. "Do you think I can't sense what is happening in the galaxy? I felt what happened to Hosnian Prime and it nearly drove me into unconsciousness. Do you think I can't sense the galaxy at war? Do you think I can sense our friends suffering?" He asked sardonically.

Now Rey's anger was real. It was becoming clear that he did understand the situation. He simply didn't care. "So why don't you do something about it!" She shouted.

Han moved forward. "He can explain on the falcon. Maybe getting away from this god forsaken island will snap him out of it. Chewie grab him!" He said as he moved to pin Luke between the Wookie and himself. Clearly Luke had lost his mind on this planet. But he was taking him back to Leia whether he liked it or not.

Chewie growled and affirmation and moved forward to come behind Luke.

Rey took a step back. Aghast at what was happening. When they had come to fine Luke Skywalker. She had imaged hundreds of different scenarios of how that meeting would go. But she had never considered that they would have to kidnap him to getting to come back to help Leia.

But suddenly both the Wookie and Han stopped moving. Not just stood still. They literally froze in place as they were moving to grab Luke. But whatever was happening was clearly involuntary as she heard both Han and Chewie making angry and annoyed noises as they found themselves unable to move or talk.

Luke slowly rose up from his seat and moved between the frozen forms of his friends. Once he was a few metres away from them, Han and Chewie suddenly stumped forward into each other as the invisible force that held them fast suddenly released them.

Rey understood now. It was the same power that Kylo Ren had used on her on Takodana. That grip in the Force that made froze you solid. She suddenly wondered if Luke had been the one to teach Kylo that ability. Back when he had been Ben Solo.

"I am sorry, old friends." Luke said tiredly to Han and Chewie. "But I am not coming back."

Chewie did not respond. His fury at Luke was spent. Han simply stared at him angrily. But impotently as he realised he had no chance of forcing Luke to do anything he did not want to do.

But Rey was not finished yet. "We are not leaving without you!" She declared.

"Get comfortable then." Luke returned as he began to walk away down the slope of the hill.

The sheer apathy that Luke was showing was infuriating to Rey. After all they had done to recover the map. Everything they had banked their hopes on. All the people that they had lost to find him before the First Order did. He was just going to walk away!

The next words came out before she could stop herself.

"Maybe Kuvira was right about you. Maybe you really are just a pathetic coward! No wonder she wasn't worried about you!" She screamed as tears of frustration and desperation began to collect in the corners of her eyes.

Luke stopped as her words reached him.

Slowly he turned around to look back at them. "This Kuvira. You keep saying her name. Always in the same tone of voice, half whispered as if she was somehow listening. And always with the same under current of emotion. I sense the fear, the anger and from you." He gestured to Rey. "The grudging respect."

He paused. "Who is she?" He asked finally.

Han fielded that question. He stepped forward, still angry at Luke's dismissal. "She is the shutta who did that to Chewie!" He said as he gestured to Chewbacca's destroyed eye. "She is the commander in chief of the entire First Order and the one who ordered the destruction of Hosnian Prime! And she is the one who is currently chasing down your sister with plans to have her executed. If that matters to you at all!" He spat.

Luke turned to him. "It matters to me Han." He said softly. He turned back to Rey. "And yet I can sense your respect for her. Why?" He asked.

Rey was hesitant. She was not sure why Master Skywalker would want to ask her that. He clearly had no interest in returning to the known galaxy. So what difference did it make to him who Kuvira was? She was also a bit nervous about talking about her respect for Kuvira while Han and Chewie were in ear shot. Since neither of them had anything nice or redeemable to say about the Grand Admiral.

But after a few seconds, she figured that if answering his questions made Luke understand the gravity of the situation. Then it was worth the attempt.

"Grand Admiral Kuvira. She is dangerous but she is impressive. She is a tactical genius able to command entire fleets to win victory. She is a great warrior. I tried to fight her once but she completely kicked my ass. She is not afraid of death. She was still fighting us while she was suspended over a river of lava. And she is a charismatic person who leads her people from the front. I hate her for what she has done. But I respect her for her qualities." She trailed off.

But Master Skywalker looked at her. Clearly knowing there was more.

With a moment of hesitation. She continued. "She was the first person who saw any worth in me. I was a prisoner on Starkiller Base. She could have killed me right there. No one would have cared. I am a nobody. A scavenger from Jakku would not have been missed by anyone." Rey said pitifully. "But she didn't she asked me about my life and we talked about what happened on Takodana during a battle. She said that I was impressive and had natural talent. Even when I tried to escape she said that I had proven myself to her."

Rey looked down at the floor as she continued speaking. "No one had ever said thing like that to me before. I have always been on the side lines. On Jakku you kept out of the way and you did not draw attention to yourself. If you did you ran the risk of being killed by other more violent scavengers. I have never had anything to be proud of or skills I could take pride in. Kuvira was the first person who saw anything in me."

"Even after I could not land a blow on her during my escape attempt she offered me a place in the First Order. She was even willing to shield me from Kylo Ren if I gave up the information he wanted. To have someone that powerful and that important think I was worth something was…nice." She trailed off feebly.

It was the only thing that she could think to say.

Luke looked at her for a few more moments. Then he turned away and continued walking back down the slope.

Rey watched him go. Her hope sinking as she saw him turn his back on her, his friends, the Resistance and his own sister.

She did not understand. The legends and stories of Luke Skywalker that she had heard about over the years were nothing like this angry, bitter old man that she had found. It was almost enough to make her wonder if this was not the real Luke Skywalker but instead some impersonator playing a bad joke.

But Han and Chewie had confirmed his identity and even they did not seem to understand what had driven him to close himself off from the galaxy on this barren and almost lifeless island on a planet that might as well not exist to the wider galaxy.

Once again Rey could not help but think back to what Kuvira had told her. How she had no fear or interest in Luke Skywalker. How he was a coward that had fled into the dark of the galaxy and clearly had no interest in helping her or the Resistance.

At the time it had been easy to dismiss her words as wrong. But now she was faced with Luke Skywalker and he appeared to be everything that Kuvira had claimed that he was.

 **The Colossus – D'Qar System**

 **Kazuda Xiono – POV**

"We are coming out of hyperspace in two minutes Captain Doza. We will be at the Resistance base any moment." Neeku said happily as the endlessly cheerful green faced Nikto looked up from his station on the navigation terminal.

Captain Doza stood on the bridge and nodded down at him. "Thank you Neeku. Let us know when we are exiting hyperspace. The captain turned to look at Jarek Yeager. "Yeager, have the citizens of the Colossus ready for our arrival and keep the aces on alert. We don't know what the situation is on D'Qar." Dosa ordered firmly.

Yeager nodded. "I'll have Tora and the others at their ships just in case things go sour. It probably wouldn't hurt to have the defence cannons primed and ready." Yeager added as Doza.

Kaz looked at them with puzzlement. "Guys we are not going into battle. We are about to arrive at the Resistance base. If there is any place in the galaxy safe from the First Order it will be with Poe and General Organa. I think you can dial down the paranoia." He said as he emphasised his words with hand gestures.

Captain Doza turned to Kaz with a look that brooked no argument. "We are still at war young Kazuda and until we know for certain that we are in friendly territory we should remain on our guard." He said before he turned back to the viewpoint.

Kaz looked to Yeagar for support. "Yeager, back me up here. You were in the rebellion. You know we can trust the Resistance to give us a place to rest and regroup." He pleaded.

Yeahar looked at Kaz with a classic look of the elder pitying the youth for their innocent naivety. "Your right Kaz." He said to a look of triumph from Kaz. However his next words brought it crashing down. "And when I was in the rebellion we lost bases all the time. Yavin, Hoth, Dantooine, the list goes on. So until we know that we are safe we will keep our eyes open and our guns ready." Yeager said as Kaz deflated behind him.

Still he could not argue they made some good points. "Ok, fine." He muttered as he folded his arms across his chest in a clear pout of disappointment.

At that moment Neeku spoke up. "Well I can happily say that we are arriving at D'Qar so we will soon know if we are safe or about to be blasted into a fiery ball of wreckage." The Nikto said in his usual cheerful voice that did not suite the words that came out of his mouth.

With that said the Colossus burst out of the hyperspace tunnel and found themselves back in real space.

In front of them was the green and blue marble that was D'Qar. The planet was a beautiful one and it would have been a nice sight to see after the void of space and the endless blue of Castillon.

It would also have been a nice sight if it were not for the massive debris field that was hanging in the orbit of the planet.

At first Kaz hoped that it was just a part of the planets natural asteroid belt. But that hope was quickly crushed when it was obvious that the field was not part of the natural formation. Also when it was clear that the debris were made of metal rather than ice and rock formations.

The entire command room fell silent as they moved closer to the transparasteel viewport to get a better look at the wreckage surrounding the planet.

"I am scanning the area for lifesigns." Captain Doza's personal security droid reported as it manned the console that linked to the sensors. Neeku also turned to the scanner read outs and began to servery them as the scan reports came in. He also began to send out messages on the Resistance communication frequency.

"I am not getting any response from the Resistance base. Just static." The Nikto reported as he trailed off. Clearly not knowing what else to say.

Yeagar looked out at the scene of destruction in front of him. His face was mournful but also set and resilient. It was as if he had been preparing himself for this possibility since they left Castillon. Perhaps he had. As he had just said. He had seen many bases and places that were thought safe destroyed by the Empire.

Maybe this was just the latest in a long list.

"Whatever happened, it looks like they put up a fight. And not that long ago either." He said with grim stoicism in his tone.

His eyes, along with almost everyone else on the bridge. Had been drawn to the surface of D'Qar itself.

On the planets green and verdant surface was a glowing red hole in the crust of the planet. It was clearly caused by a massive blast. The glowing was born from a thousand fires that must still be burning on the surface. Cracks in the planet's crust spread from the centre of the crater that glowed as magma flowed from the jagged scars that branched out from the centre of impact.

It had the look of a bloody wound. An actual injury to the planet itself like a stab wound might be found on the body of a person. In many ways that was quite appropriate.

The red crater was clearly where the Resistance base had once stood. It had been a place of hope and freedom for the galaxy only days ago. Now it stood as a testament to evil. A blight on the galaxy that served only to remind people of the price of defying the First Order.

For there was no doubt in anyone's mind who had done this. If it had not been obvious enough there was the scattered ruins of TIE fighters all over the place. Mingling with the charred hulls of X-wings and A-wings.

But Kaz was not willing to give up yet. With mounting dread he keyed the Resistance frequency and send it out across all bandwidths. "This is Kazuda Xiono of the Colossus. Is anyone there?" He asked.

Silence.

With mounting desperation, he tried again. "Commander Dameron, please respond."

Nothing

Still he persisted. "Commander Dameron, General Organa, are you there? Anyone please respond." He begged as hopelessness began to seep into his soul.

"I think we are too late Kaz." Yeagar said with a calm bluntness that angered Kaz. But right now he was too rattled to do anything or call him out on it.

"No, no it's gone. The Resistance base. It's been wiped out." He said as if saying the words out loud would help him believe it.

For a moment they just stared out at the debris field. Trying to gain some sense of what had happened.

It was clear who the combatants had been. The destroyed hulls of dozens, if not hundreds of TIE fighters, X-wings and A-Wings littered the space around D'Qar. Many of them bouncing off the Colossus's hull as they moved closer to the planet.

They would also make out the shattered hulls of several larger ships within the battle zone. Kaz recognised them as star fortress bombers. A ship he had seen during his time in the New Republic navy. But most clear of all where the burned out husks of what had once been two larger cruiser size ships. Admittedly they were so damaged they could not even make out what shape or class they had been. But they were clearly larger then run of the mill star fighters.

But the face that they did not have the look of First Order ships did not help their feelings on who won the battle.

Yeager came up behind Kaz and put his hand on his shoulder. "Kaz, this was clearly a huge battle. But if I know Poe. I bet he and Leia are on the other side of the galaxy by now." He comforted the depressed Resistance agent.

Before Kaz could answer the sensor console began to beep as Doza's droid looked up at them. "We might wish to go to the other side of the galaxy as well. Life sensors have picked up a massive concentration of life forms heading straight towards us from the other side of the planet." The droid reported in a tone that was the closest a droid could get to panicked.

Doza snapped his head to look at her. Military bearing in full force. "Can you identify the ship or who it is controlled by?!" He asked.

In response the droid simply pointed a robotic finger out the view screen, forcing the others to turn back to face the planet again.

From the darkside of the planet a shape was emerging as the light of the system sun slowly illuminated the ship. The sight was very ominous which seemed to fit the situation perfectly. It was almost like watching a stalking predator emerge from the undergrowth and step out to face its cornered prey directly.

It did not take long to figure out who the ship belonged too. The shape was clearly in the iconic wedge shape that all First Order and before them Imperial ships had used.

But what was not iconic was the outlandish size that the ship displayed. It was about twice the size of the star destroyer that had attacked them on Castillon. And that had been far too big for Kaz's liking already.

It was bristling with gun emplacements and it had some kind of strange cannons on the underside of its hull. Somehow Kaz knew that this was the ship that had destroyed the Resistance base. Only guns as stupidly big as those could create such an impact to the surface of a planet.

Doza slammed an emergency button in front of him and suddenly the sound of alarms was ringing through the entire Colossus space station.

Yeager turned to the droid. "Is there any chance they haven't detected us yet?" He asked in a voice that seemed to accept that it was a foolish hope.

Before the droid could even answer the massive ship completed its circulation of the planet and turned directly to face them.

"That is a negative Mr Yeager." The droid replied.

Doza was not amused. "We need to jump out of here now." He said as he began inputting the instructions and coordinates for the hyper drive into his command console. But before he was half way finished Neeku spoke up with a clear expression of foreboding.

"Captain. I am afraid that now that the Resistance base has been utterly obliterated. We cannot replenish our hyperdrive fuel. We do not have the ability to jump anywhere." Neeku said as he wrung his hands nervously.

Doza, Kaz and Yeagar looked at him in horror as they realised he was right. They had been banking on getting their supplies restocked at the Resistance base. That they had managed to get a thirty year old hyperdrive working had been nothing short of a miracle.

But they had been taxing it to the limits to get to D'Qar. And now it was drained with nothing left to give.

They were caught. In a trap that was almost entirely of their own making.

Kaz rushed forward. "There has to be away we can get the Hyperdrive working. We can syphon fuel from the rest of the station." He said with clear desperation.

Neeku however was shaking his head. "I am afraid it is not simple fuel that we need Kaz. We have drained our supply of qulaxium. Without a new source we are not going anywhere." The Nikto reported.

Kaz turned to Yeager and then to Doza. Hoping that one of them would know what to do. "We have to do something. If we don't get out of here now the Colossus will be destroyed and the Resistance needs us to help them!" He stressed as he searched for some sign of salvation.

But there was nothing in Doza's face that shows he had an idea. He had been a Captain in the Imperial Navy. He had gone through many difficult situations and more often then not he had been able to find away. But in this case he had nothing. They needed the hyperdrive to get out of here and they did not have any fuel for it.

It was as simple as that.

Yeager was not much better. His time in the Rebellion had forced him to work with what he had rather then what he wanted. And in his life he had pulled off some truly miraculous victories or escapes from the jaws of death.

But even he could not conjure something from thin air.

Captain Doza stood still for a moment as his mind cycled through countless scenario's that maybe they could use to get out of here.

But before he could do anything the door to the Command deck burst open, and in stepped a very angry and very dangerous looking Quarren pirate.

"What the kark is going on?!" Captain Kragan shouted as he strode onto the deck. "Why are their alarms blaring through the ship?! Some of us are trying to sleep off a hangover you know!" He emphasised his point by slamming his cybernetic hand down on the command consoles.

Doza was not in the mood to indulge this degenerate. "The alarms are going off because we are under attack Kragan!" He bit out as he pointed out the viewport at the First Order ship that was growing larger and larger as it headed towards them.

Kragan saw the ship and immediately seemed to come to his usual self as his mind snapped into action. He turned to face Doza. "Then why the kriff are you not getting us into hyperspace and away from that monster?!" He demanded.

Yeager answered that one. "The hyperdrive is out of fuel and we need more qulaxium to getting it running again. Without that we cannot jump anywhere."

Kragan looked at Yeagar and then back at the First Order dreadnaught for a long moment. Then he turned around began to walk out of the command deck.

Yeager was clearly surprised by the pirate's sudden and seemingly calm exit. "Where are you going?" He asked while trying to keep the suspicion out of his tone.

The Quarren did not even turn around as he continued walking. "I am heading to the hanger to get my ship and my crew out of here before that ship blows this whole station to atoms." He replied with no care whatsoever in his voice.

Kaz stared at him in shock. "You're just going to abandon the Colossus!" He asked as though he had been personally betrayed. "What about all the people on board?!" He demanded.

Kragan stopped and turned to look at the young Resistance spy. "What about them? This alliance was to escape from the First Order on Castillon and to punish them for their betrayal of us. Now that we are away from Castillon this joint venture is over. The Colossus and its people are your problem now." He said as he began typing commands into his comlink. No doubt instructing his crew to prep their ships for departure.

Kaz was not finished. "So you're just going to let the First Order kill us all. You don't think they will kill you too after the battle on Castillon. We need to stick together if we are going to have any chance against them!" He pointed out, hoping to get the pirate chief to see sense. It was not that he had any liking for the pirates (except Synara) but the Resistance needed all the help it could get and so did the Colossus. If they left they would find it much harder to defend the ship.

But it was clear Kragan could not care less. "I have a feeling that the First Order is going to be much more interested in taking or destroying the Colossus then they will be in attacking my small pirate fleet. It was after all the fact that they wanted control of your station that they came to Castillon. Well as far as I am concerned they can have it. I have lost too much money and too many men to this cursed venture already. I wash my hands of it." He said as he made it to the door.

Kaz now was losing his temper. "We helped your get off Castillon. We gave you a place to stay, we shared are food and supplies with you. Even after all the hell you put us through with your attacks. Now you're going to abandon us, when you said you would help us against the First Order!" He shouted.

Kragan did not have lips like humans or near humans did. But when he looked back, Kaz was confident that he was smirking. "Pirates promise….I lied." He chuckled before he left the room. Clearly heading for his ship.

Kaz was so angry he was almost about to chase after the backstabbing bastard. But Yeager placed a hand on his shoulder to restrain him. "Let him go Kaz. He and his pirates were never on our side. They just went along with us because it suited them. False friends are more dangerous then enemies. We are better off with them being far away from us." Yeager explained firmly.

Kaz was still seething but he nodded after a moment. "I know. I just felt that he might have had some gratitude for all we have done." He said bitterly.

Yeagar shook his head. "Pirates are only out for themselves Kaz. As long as they get what they want the rest of the galaxy can burn for all they care." He said with contempt in his voice.

Doza broke in. "The pirates are not our main concern. That star destroyer is going to be within range any moment. We need a plan!" He ordered.

They all turned back to the Star destroyer dreadnaught which was closing fast. They knew that they needed to get a plan and fast.

Kaz spoke up. "We can't get the Colossus into Hyperspace. But could we try to out run them in real space?" He asked.

Yeager and Doza both shook their heads. "The Colossus is designed as a mobile space station. It could never outrun a warship. Even if it could the dreadnaught would just send fighters to destroy us." Doza said bitterly.

Yeager turned to Neeku. "Neeku, is there nothing else we can use to get the Hyperdrive working. Anything at all we can use to provide power?!" He asked, his voice betraying his urgency as the dreadnaught was almost in range.

Neeku wrung his hands nervously, which did not raise their hopes. "I am afraid not. The Hyperdrive is a complicated piece of machinery. And the one on the Colossus is over thirty years old. It cannot be powered by just anything. Without qulaxium we are not getting into hyperspace. That is the end of it." The Nikto said hesitantly.

Doza cursed. "If we only had time we could have dispatched our ships to find qulaxium in the debris field, the planet or in a nearby system. But we have no time now." He slammed his hand into the console top to vent his feelings the only way he could.

"Captain Doza. What should we do?" Kaz asked with desperation. Befoire Doza could answer, the alarms suddenly changed pitch.

The Dreadnaught was now in range.

 **Authors Note**

 **I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Sorry it took a while. I have just moved house and I had to get settled among other real life issues.**

 **Anyway I plan to do another two interlude chapters to get an idea of what is happening in the galaxy. If anyone would like to have the POV for a specific character, please let me know.**


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